Queen's Gambit Accepted
by Jeriddian
Summary: The story is now complete. To those of you who are new to it, this is the continuation of the saga of the chess captain and the cheerleader, Kevin and Tara, started in Campy's Mating Games, now an integral part of my Resolution universe.
1. Prologue

**Queen's Gambit Accepted**

based on Campy's story "Mating Games"

©Copyright by Jeriddian 2007

Disclaimer: Kim Possible and all related characters are property of the Disney Channel.

Also based on the first three seasons of the television series

FanFiction Rating: M

**I would like to thank Campy for his permission to let me base this story on his own tale "Mating Games". I would recommend that you read his story as a prequel to my own, even though he's still one chapter away from finishing it. What is already posted will still give you the basis for this one. This story really appealed to me because of the character of Kevin Guberman, with whom I can identify very closely. Like him, I had two physicians for parents, I did well in school, and I was my high school chess club captain, as well as the city junior chess champion and city high school champion. Of course, that was so many years ago, I can hardly remember it now. Where Campy's story is more lighthearted and teen oriented, this one is more serious and involved with the characters. In other words the drama is ratcheted up another notch. I hope you enjoy it, especially if you were a nerd chess player back in high school like I was.**

**Also, for those of you who are chess aficianados, I'm an old timer when it comes to chess notation, so I don't like to use the algebraic format. I hope that doesn't incovenience things too much.**

**Prologue**

Tara Monroe sat nervously in front of the chess board, facing off her opponent from the other side, a spectacled red headed boy from Upperton High who was quietly adjusting his white chess men into their starting positions. She sighed, knowing that her wearing the blouse with the horizontal stripes wasn't going to do her any good this time. Those coke bottle lenses he sported would not let him see anything beyond the chessboard itself. She looked over at her boyfriend, Kevin Guberman, who was also the chess team captain, and frowned, nodding her head in her opponent's direction to point that out. He quietly smirked and laughed to himself. He had told her that she didn't need to dress like that because her smarts were more than enough to win against any of these guys, but it was also true that it had been an effective strategy. Her stunning blonde looks, decked out in seemingly demure, yet still suggestive outfits, had been disconcerting enough to several of her opponents here at the annual Tri-City high school chess tournament to disrupt their games against her.

'Well', she thought with amusement, 'It got Kevin too, the first time we played face to face.'

But Kevin was never distracted like that again, and it was true that against the better players at the tournament it still didn't work, so she had to rely on her acumen in chess play to win those games when she was able, and she had been quite able as it turned out. The tournament had gone very well. She and Kevin each had some wins and several draws each, but more importantly no losses. This was the final game in the tournament and the board was being followed by all the contestants. The two faculty sponsors of the chess clubs from both high schools were there to monitor the match and were now setting the chess clock. Even the local news was there, as the story about the "blond bombshell cheerleader" who was beating all the chess geeks in the tournament had become a local gossip item.

The tally had the Middleton High Chess Club in the overall lead by half a game over Upperton High. The individual lead was held by Kevin who was a half game ahead of the two players tied for the second. Those two were Tara, who was now second board position on the MHS squad, and the red headed kid she now faced. This game would decide the individual and team championships. All she needed was a draw for Middleton High to win both first place trophies.

Everything was ready. The two faculty looked at each other and nodded. One of them put the chess clock down and pressed the button on Black's side, starting the clock for White. The game had begun. Each of them now had two hours to make forty moves apiece. The red-headed kid studied the board carefully, looked up at Tara with a stern face, then made his first move, pawn to queen four. He punched the time clock. Tara smiled to herself, sure he must have seen her play in the three games where she played Black against a king pawn opening. She had played the Sicilian Defense against each one and beat all three adversaries hands down within thirty-five moves, even when one of them tried the Fischer variation. She had to admire her opponent's shrewdness. The kid was smart enough to have followed her game playing and not her looks. He knew she would likely play the Sicilian to another king pawn game, and must have seen she had learned the different variations of that opening very well.

Tara considered her response. Briefly, she thought of trying an unconventional opening like the Reti system which started with the unusual opening knight move, but quickly discarded that. Smoothly reaching towards the board, she responded in kind with the matching pawn to queen four, punching the time clock afterwards. The red-headed kid perused the board briefly and soon made his reply, moving pawn to queen bishop four, tantalizing her with the free pawn for the taking. But Tara knew the risk of this 'gift'. Taking the pawn would gain her a material advantage, but it would also give White the control of the center and a clear positional superiority.

'Okay.', she thought, 'the Queen's Gambit. So far, so good.'

She took her time now. As she stared at the board, deep in thought, Kevin noticed she had hesitated and looked at her, puzzled. Normally when a game started, the first seven to eight moves on each side of a chess opening went very quickly as they were all very well established. One did not normally vary from them without very good reason because any such variation would usually spell disaster. Good players would always get through them quickly, knowing exactly what the other player was going to do in the early stages. It was once you got past them into the middle game where solid chess theory broke down that things got interesting. But here, Tara was thinking longer than usual on just the second move. Frowning, Kevin looked at his girlfriend, wondering what was going through her mind.

Then she reached out and took the white queen bishop pawn with her queen pawn. As she punched the clock, a murmur of interest ran through the gallery. The red-headed kid looked up in mild surprise, and Kevin's eyes were wide in shock. She had accepted the gambit, and he saw she intended to go all out for the win, not even considering the draw.

Tara looked at him and smiled, winking. She knew what was going through his mind. Normally, the best play was to decline the gambit. That offered the best chances at victory for Black. Accepting the gambit made for more exciting action, but it was riskier, and White was almost always the winner in those games. Kevin wanted so much to say something, but of course couldn't in the middle of play. He chewed on his lip and peered back at her in consternation, but she simply turned her attention back to the board with a serene look as the game again went on briskly.

3.N-KB3...N-KB3

4.P-K3...P- KN3

Kevin relaxed, liking that move. She was going for the fianchetto of the bishop, placing the bishop in front of her knight which could then attack across the long diagonal of the board from corner to corner and straight through the crucial center squares. This would significantly strengthen her position.

5. BxP...B-N2

6.O-O...O-O

7.N-B3...KN-Q2

8.Q-K2...N-N3

9.B-N3...P-QR4

10.R-Q1...

This last move got Tara's attention. Now that she no longer had her queen pawn there to run interference, the red headed kid was trying to find a way to power himself down the queen file straight into the heart of Black's defense.

'Whoa,', she thought, 'That's so not what I expected.'

Worried she had missed something, she studied the board closely, then a subtle smile came to her face.

'No.', she thought, 'He jumped the gun.'

She grinned wider as she worked out her options, and things slowed down considerably. The first quick opening moves out of the way, the two contestants were completely engrossed in their tactics and took their time to determine their responses.

Kevin watched quietly, his distress dissolving away as he watched Tara make her moves. As he thought about it, he realized that this should have been no surprise. She had always favored the more aggressive openings like the Sicilian. But she was also not foolhardy. In Queen Gambits she almost always played the declined variations. but something about this red-headed kid's play must have sparked her to go for broke. He had noted Tara's opponent didn't use a king pawn opening against her, so he was sure that he had studied her play in between his own games. And this kid was Upperton's top player, better than his teammate whom Kevin had beaten last year with his obscure queen pawn opening play on his way to the championship. They had been cautious about this red-headed kid because of his reputation as a good player, and Kevin and Tara both studied his play on their off time from competition. Kevin wasn't sure what it was, but whatever Tara saw had made her think he was ripe for the taking with this unusual strategy.

He had to chuckle. She had been challenged outright, seemingly goaded to step into the ring of sixty four black and white squares in the mental wrestling match of a game normally dominated by men, thought to be easy pickings merely because of her sex. But to everyone's surprise, including him, she had boldly accepted the challenge. So, the gambit was on.

He thought, 'God, that is _so_ like her, so confident.'

It was true. They had both come so far this school year, and he was so thankful he was a part of her life. The last twelve months had been exhilarating, traumatic, awesome, surprising, even terrifying at one point. But he would never trade it for anything. It made him think again how incredible their lives had been over that tumultuous time, and he thought again of how his queen had accepted the gambit in life as well.


	2. Chapter 1

**Chapter One**

**Opening Moves**

Senior year. Man, what a change. The summer was totally badical, to the point he still wasn't believing it actually happened. But Kevin wasn't feeling so reassured things were going to stay that way. He felt cold, even though summer still held reign and it was a fairly hot afternoon despite being up near the Rockies in Colorado. The sun was beating down on him as he walked home from the first day at school. He took the long way home again, going by the park like he used to do when he was younger. When he was in middle school, the park was in direct line with his house so he always stopped by there after classes. Even after he started high school, the detour was not that bad, and he still made the regular trip out there to continue his favorite past time, visiting with his impromptu instructor of the past several years. He hadn't been doing it as much lately as his school work and chess club activities started cutting into that. But he still made the effort to do it from time to time, usually because he had something he wanted to talk about.

Kevin Guberman was eleven years old when he first learned chess at Middleton Park. He and his best friend Steve Farley had gone there to play ball that day with some other boys. Steve was so into baseball, like he still is today, and kept trying to get Kevin to play seriously. But Kevin only played because he liked playing with his best friend. He wasn't really into the game. On that one spring day though, as they played catch, Kevin noticed the seating area close to the playground for the smaller kids. This was mainly an area where parents would watch them while sitting around the picnic style tables, but there were also some smaller ones nearby which were permanently imprinted with checkerboard squares, where people could play checkers or chess. He noticed an old man sitting at one of the tables by himself with some chess pieces, and he was looking back and forth from them to a book he had opened beside the board.

Intrigued, Kevin walked over and looked at the old man reading the book, who moved a chess piece, read the book some more, then either moved that piece back where it was or moved another. Kevin had no idea what he was doing, so he asked.

"What'cha doing, mister?"

The old man looked up a little surprised, having been so engrossed in his pursuit he didn't notice Kevin was there. His face was kind enough, weathered, with a white moustache and hair hidden underneath a beret.

He smiled as he replied in a Latino accented voice, "I'm playing chess, young man."

"I know that.", replied Kevin authoritatively, wanting to impress him that he wasn't that ignorant, "But what's in that book that makes you move the pieces?"

The old man chuckled, "Well, you see, this is a book on chess openings. This teaches you how to make the best moves depending on the opening your opponent makes. So whatever your opponent plays, this book will teach you how to best respond to it so that you can win."

Kevin frowned, a little confused. He had heard of chess, but never bothered to learn it because checkers bored him and he didn't think chess was any different. After all it was just moving pieces around sixty-four squares. But now it seemed it wasn't the same at all. The old man had closed the book to where he could read the cover. It read "_Chess Openings: Theory and Practice" _by "_I. A. Horowitz_". It was a big book, too.

"Are you interested in chess, young man?"

Kevin was about to say no, but something held his tongue. The game suddenly seemed far more complicated than he originally thought, and this he found interesting.

"Well, maybe."

"What is your name, young man?"

"Kevin."

"Well, Kevin, I am Felipe Estevez. I am very glad to meet you."

The old man smiled as he shook the youngster's hand.

"Come, sit down. I will show you how to play, if you like."

"Uh, thanks, Mr. Estevez."

Kevin sat down opposite him as he set up the chess pieces.

"Do you live near here?"

"Uh, just down the road there. Where are you from?"

"Originally, I was from Cuba. I came here to this country after the revolution."

"Oh, yeah. We read about that in school."

"Yes. It was a very bad time for my country. But I am happy I came here to America."

"My family did that, too. We came here from Poland after World War Two, even though our name's German. My dad's a doctor."

The old man looked up at him as he positioned the board.

"Oh? What is his name?"

"Philip Guberman."

The old man laughed, "Ah yes! The neurosurgeon. I know him quite well, Kevin. I am a physician, too, although I just retired. I used to work with your father in consultation on several occasions. We have the same first name."

"Really?", said Kevin, his eyes widened a little.

"Oh, yes. Felipe is Spanish for Philip. There were several Kings of Spain with that name, you know. And I know your mother, too. They are both fine doctors."

"Are you a surgeon, too?"

"Oh, no, Kevin. I specialized in kidney disease."

"Kidney disease? What's that?"

Dr. Estevez chuckled again, "That's probably a little complicated for you right now. Perhaps we can talk about it later. Now, how about chess? Would you like to learn?"

Kevin looked over the board, the chess men all lined up. He couldn't help but think they looked like two armies assembled into ranks ready to charge each other, like he read about in the Revolutionary War in American History.

The eleven year old looked up at the old man, then back at the board.

"Sure."

"Good! Now, this is a pawn. He is the weakest piece. He can only move one square at a time, and only in a straight line forward, like this, except on the first move when he has the option of moving either one or two squares, like this."

Kevin spent the entire afternoon with Dr. Estevez, learning everything the old man had to teach him. By the time the sun set, he had learned all the basic moves and had played a couple of mock games to get the feel of it. Steve came by in the late afternoon and told him he needed to go home, but Kevin told him to go on home without him, and to stop by his house and tell his parents he was with Dr. Estevez at the park. That was where Kevin's father found him at dusk when he came looking for him, still enraptured by the pieces on the board. Philip Guberman greeted his old colleague with gusto, asking him how retirement was going. The old physician remarked that it was going well and he praised Kevin as a fast learner, eager to grasp the game. As if in confirmation, Kevin pleaded with his father that he wanted to come back and play more. His father laughed and said that it was fine with him. He couldn't think of a better chess teacher than a elder in the profession for whom he had great respect, as long as Kevin didn't neglect any school work or chores. Of course, he knew that was no problem as the kid was a virtual sponge, soaking up anything he heard in school right into his head. He didn't have to even crack a book to make straight 'A's.

Those days found Kevin every day in the park after school playing and studying the game with Dr. Estevez, and the old man came to appreciate and look forward to him coming each afternoon, eager to play, to learn. After Kevin lost his grandfather the following year, the old Cuban doctor easily stepped into that role with kindly advice and a sympathetic ear. Through the years after, Dr. Estevez taught Kevin the game step by step, teaching him the openings, how to play endgame, and how to deal with middle game complications. Kevin improved steadily, and by the time he reached high school was proficient enough to defeat his teacher more times than he lost. Pretty soon, there was nothing more the old physician could teach him, and as a fellow chess colleague, his teacher did him the honor of treating him as an equal. They often had long discussions on the game and chess theory, as well as life, and also about medicine. It was one of the favorite subjects of his mentor, which was how Kevin thought of him. In fact, next to his parents, Dr. Estevez was the main reason Kevin knew he wanted to be a doctor since he was twelve years old. For a young boy reaching into his teen years, the old physician had become a remarkable guide and friend, and he really was grateful to have him for that, as a friend. But as much as Kevin appreciated having him around, he could feel how much more he meant to the old man, who had lost his wife only a few years before and was left alone because they were unable to have children.

Kevin walked from home that first day of school of his senior year, thinking about his mentor. Over the last year, his health had deteriorated. He was close to eighty now, and his heart was failing. But sometimes, when he felt strong enough, he would go to the park, even if it was just to watch the world go by. On this day, Kevin hoped he would find him, and was in luck, seeing the old man sitting comfortably in one of the chairs of a chess table, casually watching the birds come and go. He looked up to see Kevin coming and smiled his huge toothy grin, genuinely pleased to see his young protégé.

"Kevin! _Mijo_! It is good to see you. How are you today?"

"I'm doing great, Dr. Estevez. How are you?"

"Oh.", shrugged the old man, "It has been a good day, nice and warm."

"Have you eaten?"

"I had a good lunch, but I am getting tired of having nothing but fruit for breakfast. Your mother keeps telling me to watch my diet."

"Well, you should."

The old man sniffled his distaste.

" _Madre de Dios_. Kevin, I'm eighty years old. What does it matter whether or not I eat an omelet for breakfast?"

"But all that cholesterol."

"Which may or may not kill me only if I live to be a hundred years old, young man. I don't think I will live long enough for it to matter. And if I enjoy eating an omelet for breakfast every day, then why not? Eh?"

Kevin smirked, "Well, I have also heard Mom grouse about your not taking your pills like you should."

"_Pfah_!", he snorted, "Your mother is a dear woman, Kevin, but she worries too much."

"That's her job, _abo_.", Kevin said playfully, calling him by the pet name he effected for him when he could not correctly pronounce _abuelo_ when he was younger.

"_Conyo me cawandye carajo_.", Dr. Estevez muttered, "Yes, I know, Kevin. After all, I was practicing medicine when she was still in diapers!"

Kevin laughed. _Abo_ was always grouchy about people fussing over him, including his mother who was his internist.

Irritated, the old man changed subjects to something more enjoyable, "Are you interested in a game today, Kevin? I feel strong enough to be a challenge to you."

Kevin sat down opposite of him and put down his back pack, but did not touch the pieces.

"Actually, _Abo_, I wanted to talk. There's something that's been on my mind."

Dr. Estevez put on a serious face, "I see. Well then, let me hear it."

"It's about Tara."

The old man's eyes lit up. He was so happy when Kevin told him about his new girlfriend at the beginning of the summer, and was very impressed with her when he brought her by to meet him. Like his parents, he was worried the boy was not going to do well with girls. Thankfully, it seemed his fears had been put to rest. But of course, that didn't mean there weren't the usual trials and tribulations that went along with such youthful endeavors. Kevin had always had this attitude that he couldn't match up to the athletes of the school, to those boys who were bigger and stronger, more handsome than he was. It was an insecurity with which he had always struggled, and the old man did his best to reassure him that it was not an issue.

Kevin told him what happened at the Mad Dog Picnic and the beach party where Bonnie tried to break him and Tara up. His voice troubled, he went on to say how he had told Tara she should probably find another boyfriend because her lifelong best friend wouldn't approve of him. Dr. Estevez began to interrupt, but Kevin asked him to hear the whole story first. The old man settled back down, intent on Kevin's words as the boy went on to describe the confrontation that night, about how Tara finally broke with Bonnie for his sake, and how she told him she still wanted to see him. He told _Abo_ how grateful he was for that, but he was still distraught that it had caused such a difficulty for Tara, losing her best friend over him.

Dr. Estevez rubbed his chin with one hand as he thought this over.

"I see, Kevin.", he replied carefully, "And the problem you have is... ...what?"

Kevin looked goggle-eyed at him, "Come on, A_bo_! I caused her to break up with her best friend! That jerk Jason Morgan tried to start a fight with me and she ended up getting in the middle of that, too. It's causing a lot of bad feeling. There's no telling what it's going to do to her relationship with the rest of her friends, especially the cheerleaders. I mean, I don't think Jess or Kim would go against her, but so many of her friends are so into the food chain."

"Ah yes, this 'food chain' business.", his mentor mused, "I do remember when I was in school, my boy. I know what you mean about a 'class structure'.

"Yeah. I'm really worried about her having to tolerate all this crap. It would be so much better if I was one of those jock types."

"But Kevin, are you not one of these 'jock types' you mention? You do lift the weights, do you not?"

"Well, yeah, _Abo_. But I'm not on one of the sports teams that are so popular. You know, like football, baseball."

"Ah, yes, I see. But why are you so sure that such a person is better for her?"

"_Abo_, I really care about her. With all the trouble my seeing her is causing, she probably would be better off with someone else."

Dr. Estevez frowned critically at his young protegee. Then he exploded.

"_Mierda_!", spat the old man, "Kevin, if I were not so old, I would come over there and smack your head! How dare you insult the girl that way?"

Kevin looked at him in astonishment, "Huh? What do you mean? I didn't insult anybody."

"Is that what you think?", the old man challenged, "You think that you are such a lower class of person that you allow this, uh, Bonita? What is her name again?"

"Bonnie. Although I have another term for her that starts with a 'B'"

"Oh I assure you, Kevin, the Spanish words I have for such a girl are far less kind!" he said angrily, "But you would allow this, this Bonnie, to determine your worth to _su novia_, your girlfriend? For shame! Tell me, who determines your worth to Tara? Who makes the decision on who she wants to be her boyfriend? Eh?"

Kevin continued to gape, puzzled, "Uh, she makes that decision, of course."

"Of course!", Dr. Estevez riposted, "So why is it you want someone other than her to decide who she should see? Namely you?"

"Me? I'm not making any deci..."

""Oh, but you are, young man!", he interrupted, "Who are you to tell Tara who she can see and who she cannot see? Who are you to decide what she feels in her heart? Who are you to tell her she's wrong in thinking you are worthy of her affection?"

Kevin couldn't respond, shocked into silence as he stared. He had never quite looked at it that way.

"You must understand, _mijo_.", the old man said gently, "If you truly honor this girl, you must respect her choices no matter what anyone else thinks. If she chooses you, and you do respect her decision, you are obligated to honor it by being what she wishes you to be to the best of your ability. You had better think you are good enough for her, because if you don't then you truly do not deserve her."

"But _Abo!_"

'But nothing, _mijo_. You despair because all these other boys are bigger or stronger, or perhaps _mas guapo_, more handsome than you? It is a lot of silliness that will blow away in the wind after you graduate! You do not have to be an Adonis to be handsome, nor do you have to be one of these athletic musclemen to be considered attractive. You have all you need to attract a woman, Kevin, and more. You have a brain far superior to theirs with intelligence and compassion and morals, and wisdom that will far outlast their physical looks."

Then the old man's tone became sharp with his protege, "But your wisdom needs a little help here, I must say."

Dr. Estevez slowly got up from his chair and went over to Kevin, putting his hand on his shoulder and looking into his eyes.

"Kevin, whatever these boys and girls in your so called 'food chain' think, it is false, of no consequence. The only thing that matters is, do you care for this girl?"

Kevin looked up at his mentor, his face serious.

"Oh, yes.", he whispered.

Dr. Estevez nodded sagely.

"Do you think you can be good for her? Do you make her happy."

Kevin had to stop and consider all the times when Tara would unexpectedly laugh or kid him about something when he wasn't expecting it. He always seemed to entertain her somehow, and the glow in her eyes always showed her affection.

"Yes, _Abo_."

"Then, tell me, _mijo_, who is the best boyfriend for this girl?"

Kevin looked at him dewy-eyed as he whispered again, "I am."

"Then I suggest you let her know that, _immediamente_."

Kevin smiled lopsidedly as he had to work hard from letting any tears fall. He got up and hugged the old man, who laughed softly, gently clapping him on the back. Kevin let go and bent down to grab his backpack.

"Guess I better go, then."

"Yes, Kevin. And please give my regards to her. She is a delightful young lady and I look forward to seeing her again."

"I will, _Abo,_ I will", Kevin answered, and he took off running, excitement taking hold.

Dr. Estevez watched him run off towards Tara's house with a pleased smile on his face.

As he disappeared from view, he quietly said to the wind, "_Vaya con Dios, mijo_."

Then he put away the chessmen into his pack, gathered it up with his sweater, and turned to walk back to the retirement home nearby where he lived.

* * *

Kevin ran until he was half a block from Tara's house. He pulled his cell phone out and hit speed dial, smiling as he looked again at Tara's picture on the screen, grinning even broader when he heard her voice.

"_Hey, there, handsome. How're you doing?"_

He chuckled, her upbeat manner bringing him more out of the doldrums.

"Doing good, gorgeous. Are you at home?"

"_Yeah._"

"Can I come over for minute?"

"_You can come over anytime for as long as you want._", she answered playfully.

"Okay, be over in five."

"_Can't wait_."

He hung up the phone and changed course, heading for her house. He knew now he needed to say what was on his mind. At the pool party, he never really spoke about what he did, being as embarrassed as he was. But now he needed to do it, to get what he was feeling out in the open. Even after the beach party, after Bonnie and Jason pulled their little stunts and he and Tara were okay, reaffirming each other's desire to stay together, he knew he could have said more. It was just so hard for him to open up like that. He arrived on her doorstep and rang the bell. She answered it immediately, stepping out on the porch and wrapping her arms around him, planting a long, enraptured kiss on his lips. She sighed with pleasure when she finally unlocked her own from them.

"Oooooh. It's been too long since the I saw you at the party.", she said coyly.

"We saw each other in school.". he replied, grinning.

"But its been too long since I got you alone."

He replied softly, "Yeah, too long."

He looked at her longingly, but she could sense he had something on his mind.

Tilting her head slightly, she asked, "What is it, Kevin?"

He pursed his lips, saying only, "Come walk with me."

He took her hand and led her down the steps into the front yard. He didn't speak right away. She waited for him patiently.

"Tara, I need to say what I should have said when I... ...when I."

"When what, Kevin?"

"When I said you should find somebody better than me."

Tara rolled her eyes in exasperation and snorted, "Kevin, why are you still spacing out on that crap?"

Kevin replied, 'No, Tara, no. Things are fine. Really. There's nothing to be worried about here with us. I just need to say something about how I acted."

She relaxed and looked into his eyes, "You're not still thinking seriously about that whole 'letting me go find somebody better' thing, are you?"

"Well, yes and no. No, in that I don't think that way anymore, and I have you and _Abo_ to thank for that. Yes, because I was a total jerk when I did that. It just hit me that I didn't say then what I should have said, and I need to say it now.

"I want to say I'm sorry."

Tara sighed, "Kevin, you don't have to."

"I know that, Tara. But it's not what you think. It's because I know I don't have to do this that I want to do it. I want to say I'm sorry I didn't give you enough credit to decide who you wanted to choose for a boyfriend. Like I said, I should have trusted you more. And I want you to know that as long as you'll have me, I'll stick around, no matter who or what."

She looked at him steadily for a long while then said, "You finished?"

"Uh, yeah."

She shook her head and smiled, "You nut! Don't you think I already know that?"

"Well, yeah." he said sheepishly, "I just thought I needed to say it, you know."

She laughed, "Kevin, I chose you for my boyfriend because you make me feel better about myself than anybody I know! You are interesting and intelligent, and you challenge me like nobody else."

She ran her palm lightly over his chest.

"And it doesn't hurt that you're pretty cute, too.", she added suggestively.

Kevin gaped at her like he had just stuck his foot in his mouth... ...again.

"Guess I was just stating the obvious, huh?"

Giggling, Tara gathered him into her arms, "Hey, it's better than a boyfriend who won't talk to me at all! At least I know how my boyfriend is feeling, and that's a heck of a lot better than most girls get with their BF's. Trying to get some of them to talk is like pulling teeth."

"Yeah, I kind of know what you mean. But I don't think I've said what I need to say. What you don't know."

"Oh?"

"You see, up until that night, I always felt I didn't deserve to be with someone as wonderful as you, and what you taught me was that not only do I deserve to be with you, but that nobody else deserves to be with you more than me."

He gazed straight into her eyes, and she met his stare head on. But those electric blue orbs quickly softened and surrendered under his steady onslaught.

"About time, Guberman.", she whispered, leaning in to passionately kiss him again.


	3. Chapter 2

**Chapter Two**

**The Gambit Offered**

"Hi, Mrs. Monroe."

"Hi there, Kevin. Tara said you'd be coming over.", Tara's mom said as he entered the foyer, "She's up in her room."

She looked to be on the way out, dressed impeccably in a business suit with skirt, her briefcase and laptop packed and ready to go.

"Tara!", she shouted up the stairs, "Kevin's here!"

""Okay, mom!.", came the answer from the second floor.

"I'm on the way for the showing! I'll be back in an hour or two! You kids behave now!"

She turned to Kevin and smiled, "Bye, now.", and was out the door.

"Bye, Mrs. Monroe.", he said.

Moments later, Tara appeared, skipping down the stairs, smiling, dressed comfortably in cut offs and her casual green top.

"Hey, there! How's it going?"

Kevin couldn't help but smile. He did it every time he saw her, "Great! How about you?"

"Can't complain. Ready for a game?"

"You bet."

"Come on up."

She turned around and headed back up the stairs as he followed her. Turning to the left, she went down the hall and entered the only door on the left side. Kevin stopped when he got just inside the doorway. Taking off his backpack, he looked around in mild wonder, quietly pleased that she was comfortable letting him see her bedroom. The room was painted in a soft pink. Against the right side wall was a four poster bed with canopy, a white lace bedspread covering it. Across the canopy was matching white lace material. The floor was covered in a lush white shag carpet which matched her bed covering. On the opposite wall, above the dresser and between two doors which led to her bathroom and closet, there was a poster of Britina singing her heart out on her latest tour. Next to it was another poster advertising the latest US Chess Federation Open Championship with magical looking giant closeups of chessmen in movement pictured upon it. There were two insets. One was of the current US champion Alexander Onitschev, and the other was of a pretty brunette in her thirties, smiling out from the poster. Kevin didn't recognize her at first, but then it registered as he moved closer to view it. That was Grandmaster Susan Polgar of Hungary, four time Women's World Champion.

Hanging around the posters were various other objects, including Mad Dog pompoms, a Middleton High pennant just below them. On the other side, there was a Middleton College banner along with one from State University. There was a small shelf with a few cheerleading trophies on them. Between the posters were pictures of Tara at various times in her life. There was the one in ninth grade when she first made cheer squad. Kevin remembered how even then she looked precocious, and still, so hot. Another had her with her parents at a school function of some sort. She looked to be about eight or nine there. A third photo showed her in an extended family sitting where she appeared to be about three years old. Her parents were there as were several other individuals of about the same age who he thought were probably uncles or aunts. Judging from their looks, it seemed to be her mother's side of the family. Also with them was an older gentleman who looked to be about seventy, smiling broadly as he held the three year old on his knee. 'Probably her grandfather', he thought.

"Like that one, huh?"

He turned and looked at her glancing over his shoulder.

He grinned and said, "Yeah. That's your grandfather, isn't it? The one who taught you chess?"

Tara smiled wistfully, "Uh-huh, he's been gone a couple of years now. I really miss him."

Her voice had changed slightly, and Kevin could hear the regret there. He wondered what that was about.

"The board's over here. You want Black or White?", she asked.

"I don't know.", he replied, his eyes slit in close appraisal of his opponent, "We'll just choose the old fashioned way."

Tara grabbed a pawn of each color and held them behind her back, mixing them up and holding each one before her in a closed fist. Kevin waited only a moment before pointing at the left hand. She opened it up to show the white piece.

"White it is, then.", he said as she gave him the pawn. They sat down on opposite sides of the board which was set up on the balcony seat before the bay windows overlooking her front yard. It was a beautiful view. The curtains, like the bed, were made of that same sheer white lace material, but without the backing so that you could see easily through it. The thicker opaque secondary curtains were of a solid color design in the same off white, and at present were drawn back to either side to allow for the view.

The pawns replaced on the board, he started with a king pawn opening. She immediately responded with pawn to queen bishop four like he knew she would. She had been doing that almost every time they played with him starting out with the king pawn.

"You really like the Sicilian, don't you?", he said grinning.

She was smiling back at him, "I love aggressive openings."

"Well, what should I respond with? Classical Dragon? Nimzovitch? Maybe I should try Sozin's."

"Doesn't matter to me. I'm ready for anything."

"Huh! You're confident today."

They moved more pieces, soon getting the conflict of the middle game set up. He thought about his position longer than usual when it was his ninth move. He moved his king bishop to queen bishop four.

Her eyebrows lifted at that.

"The Fischer! That is _so_ not going to work, Guberman!"

He chuckled, "Hey, I'm first board of the Tri-city Champs. And I still got a few tricks up my sleeve."

"Well, we'll see about that.", she said, the challenge clear in her voice.

They played through the game carefully, taking their time and studying their positions before making their moves over the next hour and a half. By that time they had gotten down to the last stage of the game and the difference was a single pawn in Kevin's advantage. They both played strong endgame strategy, but at the last, Tara was not able to stop the extra pawn from being queened on the eighth rank.

Sighing, she leaned back and slowly tipped her King over on its side

Looking him straight in the eye, she said in some frustration, "One of these days, Guberman. One of these days."

Kevin laughed and smiled at her, "Hey, that's what I'm afraid of. It is getting harder and harder for me to keep up with you. If I'm not careful, you'll join the chess club just to embarrass me and take the captaincy away."

"As if!", she guffawed, then gazed at him, mild surprise on her face, looking thoughtful, "Err. You really think I could?"

He rolled his eyes and sighed, staring at her again, "Oh, yeah, Monroe, and if you do I'll never, _ever_ live it down! Can you imagine? A girl? Taking the chess captaincy away? From me? Oh, the shame!""

He suddenly went "Oww!" as she punched him in the shoulder, halfway knocking him off the balcony seat.

"Hey!", he said, laughing at her, "Don't do that! I'm a lover, not a fighter!"

"You keep that up and we'll see how much of fighter you really are!", she retorted.

She pushed at him again to knock him off the balcony, but he grabbed her arm to stop her. They playfully struggled and she yelped a couple of times before they slipped and fell onto the floor. Laughing together, Kevin pulled her in and gently kissed her, and they sat there holding each other and enjoying the closeness, relaxing on the carpet. They were leaning up against the balcony ledge, their legs extended out such that they poked underneath the bed frame.

"Tara.", he said thoughtfully, "Really, why don't you join the chess club?"

"Oh, Kevin, we've been through this.", she answered seriously, "I don't have time. Cheer takes all of it."

"But I'm sure you could make time for it. I know you would enjoy it, too, and Kim would let you have the time off."

"Come on!", she said sullenly, "They're not going to seriously let a cheerleader into the chess club."

"Sure they will!", he replied with confidence, "Once you show them you can play."

"As if!", she threw back, "They'll be too busy looking at my chest or some other part of me to notice my playing."

"Tara.", he chided, "They are not that bad. Believe me, once you start smacking some of them around a chessboard, your, uh, assets will be the last thing on their minds."

Suddenly amused, she grinned at him, "Assets? What's the matter? Can't say 'breasts'?"

"I was trying to be delicate!", he groused playfully.

"Oh, my shining chess knight!", she kidded, "Always chivalrous to the end!"

He turned red as she giggled.

"Tara.", he said, a little irritated.

"Calm down.", she said laughing, "I'm just playing you. Really, I think it's sweet."

He relaxed and said, "Thanks. Now will you think about the chess club?"

'Yeah, I'll think about it.", she replied, still laughing softly and hugging him closer.

Kevin could sense the whole cheerleader thing was still holding her back. But he didn't push it. He sat there holding her as he mused on the situation, aimlessly shifting his leg back and forth underneath the bed. His right foot was banging against something as he moved it.

"What's that?", he asked, reaching under the bed, but Tara quickly stayed his arm.

"No, don't."

He looked at her. The playful demeanor was gone, her face suddenly tense and worried.

"Tara? I'm sorry. I didn't mean to snoop."

She blinked, uncertain about what to do.

"No, Kevin. It's okay. It really is. It's just..."

She looked at her bed. The edge of the bedspread extended all the way down to the floor, so Kevin couldn't see underneath it. But she knew the sound of the Box when he hit it. Pensive, she hesitated. Should she? This was so personal to her. She looked back at Kevin, and wondered if he would understand. But then she thought of all the boys she had dated, and she couldn't think of a single one who has shown this much interest in her outside of her looks. If anyone could understand, it seemed it would be him.

Softly, she said, "I'll show it to you."

She reached under the bed and pulled out the Box. As she gently settled it in front of her, she gazed back up at him.

"I've never shown this to anyone outside the family.", she whispered.

"Really?", he whispered, awe-struck.

Kevin looked at her wide eyed, amazed at the trust she was putting in him, and looked down at this unexpected treasure, one that would tell him so much about her. On its top was a wonderfully drawn hand painted picture. It was a fairy tale castle with all manner of towers and ramparts on it. There were balconies and gargoyles and other different and exquisitely beautiful adornments. It looked like it came straight out of a storybook. The drawing was professionally done, too. He could easily see the quality of the work. In the bottom corner, there was a date, which appeared to be about when Tara was three years old. In front of the castle was a beautiful princess with long blonde hair, dressed in a shimmering blue gown and smiling, inviting all to come and join her inside. To one side of the castle, there was an ornate hot air balloon, multi-colored, ready to take off.

Kevin grinned and said, "That's you, isn't it?", pointing at the princess.

She smiled sadly, "Yeah, it is."

"Who drew this?"

"My grandfather."

"Really?"

"Yeah, he was a great artist."

"I'll say. Is that what he did for a living?"

"On the side. He was actually an architect. He designed a lot of important buildings."

Kevin glanced at her before slowly reaching for the Box. He started to lift the top very carefully, looking back at her to make sure it was okay. She nodded once, and he slowly took it off and gently laid it to the side. The first thing he saw were some old photographs. These were similar to the ones she had hanging on the wall, but were mainly of her grandfather. He gently picked them up, examining them closely as she explained each one. The first one showed her grandfather smiling broadly into the camera, holding a small blonde haired infant...

"That one was taken shortly after I was born.", she said, "Mom said he was so proud."

"Gosh.", he said, 'You were beautiful even then."

She cuffed him good-naturedly, "Flatterer!"

He smiled back, "Every chance I get."

He looked down at the next picture.

"Oh, that one I remember very well. I was about eleven then."

In this picture, Tara and her grandfather were both hunched over a chessboard, deep in thought. Whoever took the picture had caught them unawares.

"Boy. You're looking like you were really concentrating on the game there. And so young."

"Yeah.", she said serenely, smiling briefly at the memory, "I really thought I had him that time. I got so mad when mother snapped the picture because it startled me and made me lose my concentration, but Grandpa just laughed and said we could keep going whenever I was ready again."

"And?"

"I still lost."

They both laughed. He turned his attention back to the picture.

"He looks about, what? Eighty?"

"Yeah, about eighty."

They looked at the next photo, one of her grandparents together in earlier years.

"Hey,", Kevin said, smiling again, "You got her eyes, you know."

She looked at him in mild surprise, "You see that, huh?"

"Oh, yeah. Can't miss those eyes."

They paused, gazing at each other, and Kevin felt he really could drown himself in those blue pools. Finally he was able to tear himself away and look to the contents of the Box. The last picture showed her grandfather in military uniform in front of a World War Two fighter plane.

"So he was in the big one, huh?"

"Yeah, he was a hero."

"Really?"

Tara reached in and pulled out an small oblong case. It was covered with a short velvet nap of a rich purple color, like some sort of jewelry box. She reverently opened it up, revealing a military medal.

"Hey, I know that.", said Kevin, "That's a Distinguished Flying Cross."

Tara looked at him, surprised, "You know what that is? I've never known, myself! What's it for?"

"I'm not sure exactly, but I can find out. You got internet access?"

"Yeah, it's wireless. And it's open. Mom hasn't gotten around to encrypting it."

"Cool!"

He pulled out his laptop from his backpack and fired it up, quickly signing on to the internet. In no time he had looked it up on Wikipedia...

"_The Distinguished Flying Cross is a medal awarded to any officer or enlisted member of the United States armed forces who distinguishes himself or herself in combat in support of operations by "heroism or extraordinary achievement while participating in an aerial flight, subsequent to November 11, 1918. The decoration may also be given for an act performed prior to that date when the individual has been recommended for, but has not received the Medal of Honor, Distinguished Service Cross, Navy Cross, or Distinguished Service Medal."_

"Wow.", said Kevin, "I wonder what he did."

"Oh my gosh. I don't know.', replied Tara pensively, "He never would talk about it."

"It must have been really something. That's one of the highest decorations given."

Tara looked at the computer screen, her countenance sad, "I asked him once, but like I said, he never would tell me."

Somehow, Kevin got the impression she was somehow blaming herself.

He said, "Look, Tara. A lot of servicemen who come home from war won't talk about their wartime experiences. It's too painful for them to remember it. Do you recall him ever talking to anyone about it?"

Her eyes narrowed with a far off look, the memory clearly painful.

"No, you're right. I don't believe he ever did. I don't think Mom could ever get him to talk about it either."

"See, it's okay.", he said reassuringly, "He probably just didn't want you scared with gory details or something. I mean, if they were bad enough he didn't want to remember them, I'm sure he wouldn't want you to be troubled by that sort of stuff."

She understood he was trying to cheer her up and looked back at him, smiling, 'Yeah, I guess. It makes sense. Thanks."

"For what?"

"For making me feel better."

He grinned back at her, "I think I could get used to doing that."

Looking at the Box again, he could see there wasn't anything else, but it seemed something else had been in there. She anticipated the question.

"I normally keep the chess set in there, too."

Kevin wondered why, and this drew his attention back to the pieces. Taking a knight, he looked it over.

"This is hand carved, isn't it?"

"Yeah, Grandpa made the set the year I was born."

Kevin looked over the knight , then took a few other chessmen and gazed appreciatively at them as well.

"He did beautiful work, Tara. This is so good."

He noticed the felt underneath one of the pawns being a little off. He tried to press it back in place.

"Here, let me.", she said.

She took the pawn and slowly peeled back the felt basing, showing him the bright new penny underneath.

"See, he put a penny under each piece, all minted the year I was born."

Kevin smiled, "That is really neat. They all have pennies, then."

"Except one."

She pushed the felt back into place and put the pawn back on the board, then took the white queen and slowly peeled back its felt base, revealing the shiny dime, also minted the same year.

"He always told me this one was special."

"That's because it's you. You're his white queen."

She smiled sheepishly.

"Yeah, though actually I was his princess, destined to be a queen."

Kevin watched her as she reminisced. Though she had smiled, it was soon gone and the sorrow replaced it again.

"Tara.", he said thoughtfully, "These are beautiful things and memories, but they seem to make you sad. I don't understand."

Tara stared down at the carpet, conflicted. She had never told anyone other than her parents about this, and she always struggled with it herself. She missed her grandfather so much. She ached to have the talks she used to have with him, knowing he always had an answer for her questions, a way to figure out her problems and solve them. She looked back up at Kevin, his greyish blue eyes gazing at her in anticipation and concern. She knew he only wanted to help. Reaching for him, she held on as he wrapped his arms around her and stroked her hair, her head resting on his shoulder. Though he couldn't see it, he knew she had started crying as she let it out.

"I miss him so much, Kevin! I miss him. He taught me the game when I was only like four or five and we used to talk all the time whenever we played. He taught me so many things without seeming like a grownup, like when I did something bad and my mother would be really cranked or something. We would play and he would tell me what I did and why it was wrong, or how I needed to fix it and not do it again. He never, ever put me down for it, never lectured me. He was always there for me. He would take me out to that old oak tree in front and set up the chessboard and we would play. We would talk for hours about anything and everything. He was my best friend then, my hero."

She cried a little harder. Kevin held her gently, trying to give her as much support as he could through his embrace.

"Then I started growing up, you know, puberty. I made the cheer squad and then, of course I just couldn't be seen playing chess."

She spoke in a self-mocking manner, "That just isn't done by a cheerleader, you know. There were more important things like clothes, make-up, boys!"

She laughed as she said the last word , a little embarrassed that she was actually telling it to a boy. But Kevin held on to her, still stroking her hair as he listened, intently listening to what she was saying.

"I understand, Tara. I guess we all kind of go through something like that, one way or another."

"Yeah,", she said, serious again, "But the more I was doing the cheer scene, the less and less I saw him. Before I knew it, I had stopped playing. And me and Grandpa stopped talking. Then he seemed to just sort of dry up and suddenly get real old. And all of a sudden, he was gone."

Her crying started to intensify then, and Kevin understood.

He took her by her shoulders and held her in front of him, enveloping those tearful blue orbs with his own.

"No, Tara, no. It's not your fault. It can't be."

Stifling a sob, she said, "I know that, Kevin, but still, I wasn't there those last two years of his life. I should have been there."

He smiled, "But he understood, Tara. I'm sure he understood."

"Maybe, Kevin, maybe."

She held on to him again, softly crying in his arms. Kevin hugged her back, and started talking.

"Listen, I want to tell you something.", he said quietly, "My grandfather Guberman came here from Europe in 1946. Even though our name is German, we actually came from western Poland. You know we're Jewish. My grandfather was in Poland and got caught up in the war. When the Nazis took over, most of his family was taken to the camps. He didn't want to leave them, but his father told him to go, to keep the family going through himself. He didn't want to do that, but he obeyed his father's wishes. He managed to escape to France, trying to find a way to contact any more of the family and get them out, but he never succeeded. The fact that he was a foreigner in France almost got him killed, but by then he had made some friends, and they protected him.

"Then the war came. When France fell in 1940, he lost all hope of getting anybody out. He joined the resistance and fought the Germans for the next four years. They knew they could trust him because he was Jewish and his family was in the camps. He was also valuable as he was completely fluent in German, able to masquerade as a German officer or official. He had the right command of the language and the accent, and it gained the resistance access to places they couldn't have gotten into otherwise. At the end of the war, it earned him the Croix de Guerre, their highest medal, from the French government.

"Afterwards, he went back to Germany to find the rest of his family. But they had all been killed in the camps, all except his father. Somehow, my great grandfather managed to stay alive, though he had been starved and beaten. But he was so old and because of his age and all he suffered, he was slowly dying. My grandfather found him shortly before he passed away."

Kevin pulled back and held Tara by her shoulders again and looked deep into her eyes once more.

"I wasn't old enough to understand this when Grandfather passed away, but Dad told me later when I was about fourteen. When he saw his father, my grandfather was really sad and upset. It hurt him so much that he could not have been there for him, that he had been away for so many years.

"Dad tells me my great grandfather smiled at him and said these exact words. Let me get this right. He said, 'No, my son. I am content. You never left me. You were never apart from me for you were always with me in my heart. You will always be there, even after I'm gone. And you will go on after me, as it should be'."

Tara's eyes widened a little, her mouth opening slightly as well.

"He really said that?", she whispered.

Kevin smiled as he nodded.

"You see, Tara. I'm sure your grandfather felt the same way. You were always with him, in his heart. You were always there."

Tara gasped, her eyes watering up again, and she just stared in awe at Kevin as the tears silently came down. Time stood still for her then. She thought, 'How did he do that? How did he take away the sting?' The hurt was still there, but it seemed more bearable somehow. Slowly, a smile came to her face.

"You know.", she said in a small voice, "You sound just like him."

She leaned over and kissed him gently for a long time before gathering him back into her embrace and softly saying "thank you".

* * *

Neither was sure how long they stayed that way before they heard the front door open and close, telling them her mother had come back home from her showing. Tara dried her tears and got back up, starting to put the chessmen back in place on the board. Kevin got up to help her. Mrs. Monroe came in to check up on them, finding them as they finished putting the chessboard back in order.

"Well, did you have a good game?"

Tara smiled and rolled her eyes, 'Yeah, Mom. Ol' braniac Guberman wiped the board with me, again."

Her mom chuckled as Kevin interjected, "That's so not true, Mrs. Monroe. She's really getting better and better. I barely held my own today."

Tara's mom had this lightly annoyed look, "Come on, Kevin. I'm Jill. There's no need to be so formal."

Kevin blushed, "I know, Jill. It's just, you're Tara's mom, you know."

"Oh, it's not that bad. Keep saying it. It'll get easier."

Turning her attention to Tara, "Honey, I'm going to get dinner started. Your father'll be in soon. Will you help me downstairs?"

"Sure, Mom. Just let me finish putting things away up here."

Mrs. Monroe looked down and saw the open Box, the photos of her father and Tara, and the medal in its case sitting inside. Mildly surprised, she looked up again at the two teens, but they were busy reorganizing the pillows around the bay window seat and didn't see that she had noticed. As she watched, Tara bent back down to put all its contents back into the Box, then replace the top and put it back under the bed, while Kevin put his laptop away and swung his back pack on. She realized Tara apparently had been crying, but that everything seemed okay now.

Kevin said, "Well, I guess I better get going. Call you tomorrow?"

"You bet. See you then.", Tara replied, smiling.

"Okay. Bye."

He grinned back at her as he left the room.

"I'll walk you down, Kevin.", Mrs. Monroe said, " Tara, would you get out the pasta and start it going?"

"Okay, Mom."

Jill Monroe followed Kevin to the front door and showed him out, but as he walked through, she also came outside and closed the door.

"Kevin, I want to ask you something."

He turned and faced her, concerned.

"She showed you the Box, didn't she?"

Kevin blanched mildly, "Uh, yeah. She said she wanted to. I hope it was okay.."

She smiled at him, "Oh, yes, Kevin, it's okay. In fact I think it's great. You're the first boy to whom she's ever shown it. It's because she still grieves for her grandfather."

"She was telling me that.", Kevin replied, nodding, "She thinks she kind of, uh, abandoned him."

"Yes, I know. It's not true, of course."

"That's what I told her. I told her what my great grandfather said to my grandfather, that even though he wasn't with him, he was always there, in his heart. I thought she should hear that because, well, he sounded like a really great guy. I would like to think he felt the same way about her, you know... ...I just wanted to make her feel better."

Tara's mother studied him intently, smiling again, "You know, I'm beginning to understand what my daughter sees in you. Thank you, Kevin. Thank you very much for that."

"You're welcome, uh, Jill."

"See. That wasn't so hard was it? Well, I've got cooking to do. Good night, Kevin. I'm sure I'll see you soon."

She turned back towards the house.

"Uh, Jill? Mrs. Monroe?"

She faced him again, "Yes, Kevin?"

"I was thinking. My father has a lot of these kinds of mementos, like what's in the Box. He had them fixed up in a special case with picture frames and stuff. Do you think Tara would like that done with those things?"

She considered that, replying "She's mentioned doing something like that."

"Do you think she would let me do it? I mean, put the pictures, and the medal, in a special frame?"

Mrs. Monroe put her hand on her hip, nodding slowly, "You know, that might just be a good idea. We've made it a tradition to go visit her grandparents' graves on Memorial Day. It would be a nice thing to have done for that. But you'll have to ask her. They do belong to Tara."

"Oh, yes, ma'am. I'll do that."

"It's still the beginning of September, a long way yet to Memorial Day, so there's plenty of time. Just let me know when you're ready to do it.

"Okay! And, uh, there's just one more thing. Would you mind telling me her grandfather's name? You know, for a name plate?"

"He was my father, Kevin. His name was James Jackson Mallory. With two 'l's. And listen, if she does let you do this, come tell me. I have something you probably should add to it. Okay?"

Kevin smiled in anticipation, "You bet, Jill! Uh, Mrs. Monroe. ma'am!"

Tara's mom laughed, then said, "I'll see you later, Kevin."

She turned and went back into the house. Kevin stood there thinking his idea over. His eyes darted around, driven by his thoughts as he filled out the details of his plan, then he turned and ran back to his house as fast as he could to get started.

Back inside, she found Tara placing the long sticks of spaghetti pasta into the boiling water, shaking a little salt into it as well. She was quiet and absorbed in her thoughts and didn't look at her mother when she entered the kitchen. Mrs. Monroe went to the refrigerator and pulled out the spaghetti sauce she had made the previous day, grabbing a sauce pan out of the drawer to heat it up.

"You okay?"

Tara nodded, "Yeah, I'm fine, Mom."

"You were crying."

"It's okay. I was feeling down. Kevin cheered me up."

"And you showed him the Box."

Tara's head came up slightly, then turned to look at her.

"It seemed... ...right."

"You really like him, don't you?"

Tara smiled as she watched the water boil, slowly making the noodles go limp.

"Yeah, Mom. I do. I know he's not a hottie, like Steve, and he's kind of nerdy sometimes and doesn't always fit in with the crowd at school, but he's so up front and honest. He doesn't put on an act. I've never met a boy who could talk to me the way he does, understand what I was feeling. "

Jill Monroe smiled at her as she came over to the stove with the saucepan, placing it on the burner next to the pasta.

"And he doesn't treat you like a trophy, either."

"Mom.", she said, irritated.

"Honey, I'm not criticizing. I saw how you weren't really connecting with Jason last spring, and I didn't care for the way he was treating you. But I wasn't going to interfere. You have a good head on your shoulders, and I know I can trust you. You shut him down in time, like I figured you would."

"Yeah, I did.", she replied, "But Kevin. He doesn't see me like that. He doesn't freak out on my looks. I'm real to him."

"He does like your looks, right?"

"Oh, yeah.,", she replied with a small laugh and a slightly satiric manner, "He says he loves how 'beautiful I am', especially my mind."

"Ouch. That's corny."

"I know, but it's sweet, and he really means it."

"I believe it, honey. I really like him, too. By the way, remember how you always wanted to take the things in the Box and frame them?"

"Yes."

"Would you like to get that done before Memorial Day next year?"

"Hmmm. You know, that sounds great. Can you do that for me?"

"'Well, sure dear. But I thought you wanted to do it yourself."

Tara hesitated a bit before answering, then said, "Yeah, I thought about it. But it's still a little too emotional for me right now. Would you mind?"

Jill hesitated only slightly as Kevin's idea flashed through her head, and she answered without losing a step, "Sure honey, I'll see to it."

Her daughter smiled and said, "Thanks, Mom. You're the best."

Mrs. Monroe chuckled and said, "Love you too, dear. Now, will you get the plates and set the table? I think I hear your father pulling in."


	4. Chapter 3

**Author's note: This was a fun chapter for me to write. But I do want to credit Campy for the idea of of it. He thought it would be fun for Tara to be put in this situation, so I went ahead and wrote the scene for my story since he didn't include it in "Mating Games". I also wish to thank Campy for his beta review on these first three chapters and prologue as well.**

**Chapter Three**

**The Gambit Accepted**

Kevin was worried as he hurried towards the algebra classroom to talk to the junior varsity team and the faculty adviser. As varsity team captain, he was a coach for the younger and less experienced players on JV squad, mainly a few freshmen and a couple of upperclassmen who did not play well enough to make the cut to varsity. But that was not the issue. His main concern right now was that they were in a crisis situation. It was barely thirty minutes until the start of a home meet with Lowerton High's junior varsity and they were short a player. Jay Pollack was out with Mono. It was early November and Winter had started to hit the area hard. The timing of the first meet of the year could not have been worse. The flu had been going around and a lot of students were out sick. There were plenty of players on the varsity of course, but competition rules did not allow for rated players higher than Class E on the junior varsity, which disqualified all of the varsity squad members. The two possible JV alternates were out of town, so they were stuck with three. The team required four.

As he entered the classroom, one of the freshmen, Jeff Conners, quickly approached him.

"Hey, Kevin. Could you get Dennis?"

"No.", replied Kevin gloomily, "He's out of town, too."

A general moaning of despair erupted from the others.

"Now what do we do?", said Richard Dees, a sophomore.

"I don't know.", said Kevin, mildly agitated.

He looked at Mr. Amberson, the calculus teacher who was the faculty adviser for the chess club.

"No way the rules will allow us to play only three, huh?"

The older man sadly shook his head.

"I'm afraid not, Kevin. It looks like we'll have to forfeit. You can still play for the fun of it, but there won't be any formal competition."

"There's gotta be somebody!", exclaimed Paul Gertz, "I know a couple of guys that play. They aren't any good, but if a warm body at the board is all we need."

"But they aren't members of the club.", replied Richard.

Mr. Amberson interrupted, "That's not necessary, Richard. As long as the student is a member of Middleton High's student body, he'll be eligible."

"Hey! Then maybe we can use one of these guys! Can you give one of them a call?"

"Wait a minute!", cried Kevin, his eyes getting very big, "Wait! Just! One! Minute! So they don't have to be members of the chess club to play."

They looked at him in confusion, but they could see he'd just had some sort of brainstorm.

"What is it, Kevin?", asked Mr. Amberson, "Do you know someone who can play?"

Kevin looked up at the faculty adviser with wide eyes and a big smile.

"As a matter of fact, sir, I do. I just don't know if I can get, uh, this person to play. There are some, well, issues. But I do know one thing. If I can pull this off, the competition will get blown away."

"Cool!", said Jeff eagerly, but then he frowned, "Wait a minute. If he's that good, won't he be better than a Class 'E' player?"

"Not a problem.", said Kevin, his mind still racing with ideas on how he was going to do this, "Unrated player. That qualifies for junior varsity."

Paul said, "But if he's really that good, how come he's not USCF rated."

"Never bothered to join.", replied Kevin, his darting eyes and pensive face still registering the wild thoughts going through his head, "We'll change that after this meet, but it's not an issue right now. Let me go see if I can make this happen, and I'll meet you when the round robin starts."

"Do you think you can get him this quickly? The match starts in fifteen minutes.", asked Mr. Amberson.

Kevin smiled, "Actually, I'm not too worried about that. It's just that I just may have to go through a certain cheerleader co-captain to do this. See you in the auditorium in five!"

He sped out of the room, leaving them all a little exasperated. Surprised looks on their faces, they faced each other.

"Cheerleader co-captain?"

"What the heck did he mean by that?"

"Oh, wow. I'll bet it's one of their jock boyfriends."

"Got to be Steve Farley, then. That's his best friend."

"No.", said Jeff, "I know Steve. He doesn't play."

"Then who?"

"Maybe the co-captain's BF?"

"But which one would give Kevin trouble?"

They all looked at each other no more than a second as the answer hit them.

"Bonnie Rockwaller!", they all said together.

"Wait, no way.", said Richard, "Can't be her BF. He's off to college now. Besides, even if he was here, no way he could play chess."

"Well, then who?"

"Could it be Kim Possible's BF? He's the team mascot. Bonnie might make trouble about that."

"I thought she was trying to do everything she could to get him _fired_ as team mascot."

"Exactly. But the real question is... ...Ron Stoppable? Playing chess?"

They looked at each other for only another second before answering that question in unison.

"Nah!"

* * *

Kevin walked briskly down the hall towards the gymnasium, his apprehension growing with every step. But he was determined to do this although he was sure Bonnie was going to freak, and things were bad enough as it was. After the scuffle at the beach party, Tara and Bonnie were barely on speaking terms as it was, and since he was the reason for it he didn't relish the prospect of even seeing her again... ...much less facing her when trying to steal Tara away from a cheer practice for what he had in mind. As he came up to the doors, he could hear the squad going through one of their standard routines. The sounds of "Go! Mad Dogs! Go, go! Mad Dogs!" filtered through the doors as he opened them, just in time to see Kim Possible vault to the top of the pyramid and yell "We're number one!"

He watched them finish the routine, then walked up to them as the squad disassembled their pyramid and gathered around Kim.

"Good job, guys! That one's perfect!", she said, "Now let's move on to Bonnie's new cheer."

"About time.", Bonnie groused.

Irritated, Kim looked back at her, "Amp it down, Bonnie. I told you we would get to it."

"I thought I was co-captain now. So why do we have to do your cheers first?"

"Bonnie, the girls voted on it!"

"This is _so_ not an equal partnership!"

"Whatever.", sighed Kim, irritated, "let's just do it, okay? Oh, hi Kevin."

"Hi, Kim, guys."

They all greeted him except Bonnie who stared him down, frank hate in her eyes. She glared at Tara in scorn, but Tara gave as good as she got, not backing down an inch, and Bonnie finally looked away, muttering 'loser'.

Turning his attention to Tara, he asked, "Uh, could I talk to you a minute?"

"Anything for my BF.", she replied smiling, then said to her squad mates, "Be right back."

They walked off to the side of the gym.

Kevin said, "Listen, something's come up and I think you might want to try this."

"What?"

"Remember how we talked about you joining the chess club?"

She rolled her eyes and complained, "Kevin! They're not going to let a cheerleader join the chess club!"

"They will if you can prove you can play."

"And how exactly am I supposed to get a chance to do that?"

"Well."

She looked at him warily.

"What's going on?"

"The junior varsity is having a meet with Lowerton High. They're a man short. The third board player is down with mono. I think you should come in and take his place."

She stared at him in disbelief.

"What do you mean? I can't just come in and start playing tournament! I'm not even a member of the club!"

"You don't have to be a member of the club, just of the student body. And I've already cleared it with the faculty adviser and the team knows I've come to ask you to play."

"Huh? They know a cheerleader's coming in to play chess with them?"

"Uh, not exactly."

"What do you mean 'not exactly'?"

"I just didn't tell them you're a cheerleader, uh, or a girl... ...yet."

"Yet?", she exclaimed.

She looked at him like a mom who had caught her five year old with his hand in the cookie jar, and he looked like the five year old.

"I didn't want to start any arguments!", he explained desperately.

Tara blinked her eyes, dumbfounded, then unexpectedly shook her head in exasperation, laughing.

Her eyes sparkled as she said, "Kevin Guberman, you are _so_ a nerd! And so lucky I like you as much as I do!"

"Uh, yeah, I guess so.", he replied, completely red faced, "Look. Do you want to do it? I think you could wipe the board with the competition they have with both eyes shut. What do you say?"

That made her stop because she began to really consider it.

"Gosh!", she thought to herself, 'It's a tournament. They would have to play me, and maybe, maybe I _can_ make them see I can play well enough to be taken seriously.'

She studied him closely for a moment before a slow grin appeared.

"Yeah.", she said softly, "Yeah, I want to do this. When's the tournament?"

"Er, about five minutes."

"_Five minutes_?", she shouted in surprise.

Startled, the rest of the cheer squad looked hard at Tara and Kevin, wide-eyed and wondering what the hub-bub was about. Tara smiled in embarrassment and waved saying, "It's, uh, no big. We're fine."

The squad returned their attention back to going over Bonnie's routine.

Hushing down, she said frantically, "What do you mean five minutes? I've got cheer practice here!"

"I'm sorry, Tara, but this was a last minute thing. We really need a player bad."

She turned and looked at the squad in contemplation for a long moment, then looked back at Kevin. She had already analyzed Bonnie's routine, and it wasn't that hard to learn, and right now she really didn't care if Bonnie freaked out about her not being there, especially after what she did at the beach party. But she also realized, she really wanted to do it, to prove herself. 'Yeah.', she thought. The smile returned.

"Cool.", she answered calmly, " I didn't really feel like doing Bonnie's little dance number right now anyway. Let me go tell the guys first."

"You sure it'll be okay?"

She looked back over her shoulder at him as she walked back to the squad, one eyebrow raised, "Hey, if Possible can ditch any time she has to go save the world, I can do it to go play chess."

"You ready now, Tara?", said Bonnie coldly as Tara approached them, "I hate to take you away from your 'BF', such as he is, but we've got a job to do here."

Tara looked at them all a little hesitantly, "Er, sorry, guys. Something's come up and I gotta go."

"What?", exclaimed Bonnie, "But we have a whole new routine to learn! You can't leave now!"

"It's not that hard, Bonnie! I already memorized the moves!", Tara riposted.

"How important is this, Tara?", asked Kim.

"Trust me, Kim. This is important to me."

Kim looked at her and nodded. As many times as she had ditched herself, she was not about to play the hypocrite.

"Okay. We'll work around it, and I'll work with you on the moves later."

"Wait a minute!", cried Bonnie, "I'm co-captain here too, Possible! And I say we have to do this as a team! She can't go!"

Hope looked at Bonnie, irritated, "Why not, Bonnie? Even you ditched to sell chocolate. And Kim has to go when she has to go."

Jess added her two cents, "Yeah, it's not like the end of the world. It's a good routine, Bonnie, but this one's not as hard as the ones you usually come up with. We can get this number down in time for the next pep rally."

Bonnie was fuming. She looked at each of them in turn, and then at Liz.

Liz stared back at her blank faced and said, "Hey, don't look at me. I don't have a problem with it."

"Fine!", yelled Bonnie, crossing her arms angrily and turning away, "Whatever!"

Kim smirked and turned back to Tara, "Okay, have fun. I'll call you later."

Tara smiled back at her, "Oh, I think I will. And thanks."

"No big."

Hope asked, "Where are you going?"

Tara chuckled in an amused manner as she strode away, "To break down bastions of male dominance!"

They watched her as she left with Kevin, then Hope asked, "What did she mean by that?"

"Probably to play some online video game with castles or something.", muttered Bonnie angrily.

"She wasn't being literal, Bonnie!", retorted Kim.

"Whatever."

* * *

"Wait a minute, Kev! I need a minute, here."

"We don't have time, Tara! They'll forfeit us any second now."

"I can't go in there looking like this!"

"But..."

Before he could finish, she left him standing there and ducked into a restroom to fix her face and get herself as ready as she could. 'Thank heaven for those hidden pockets in my skirt.', she thought. She really did not like the idea of playing in her cheer uniform, but at this point it couldn't be helped. Straightening her outfit as best she could, she carefully redid her makeup. She took some perfume and sprayed it on a little heavier than usual. She was grateful she left cheer practice before they really got sweaty. Once finished, she looked at herself in the mirror, her game face complete, and sighed.

'Okay, not half bad, Monroe.', she thought.

She left the restroom to where Kevin was waiting for her and they started walking towards the auditorium, which was where the meet was being played.

"Uh, is that perfume?'

"Don't go there, Guberman!"

He didn't. She always had a habit of using his last name in that tone when she wasn't happy.

"Next time, I'm stopping long enough to change clothes, even if I'm late.", she sniped at him as they trod quickly down the hall.

"Come on, Tara.", he said, "They're supposed to be here to play chess, not look at you."

"What? You think just because they're geeks, they won't look?"

"Well, they _are_ geeks."

"And you don't look?"

"That's different."

She drilled him with a look from beneath half-hooded eyelids and shook her head.

Frowning, he stared back and whined, "What?"

"Nothing.", she muttered and looked straight ahead while he remained puzzled.

Since Middleton was the host team for this event, it was being held at MHS in the auditorium. When they reached it, Kevin opened the door to the back stage area and let Tara go in first. Inside there was a small crowd on stage, and an audience out front. The tournament play table was on center stage with four Staunton chess sets ready to go. The players from Lowerton were grouped on the far side with their faculty adviser while the Middleton team was on this side, huddled and whispering together. With them were Mr. Amberson as well as Mr. Barkin, who had volunteered to referee. In the audience there were several people, seemingly parents and families of the contestants for the most part. Kevin looked around in mild surprise.

""Wow, I didn't expect a crowd just for a junior varsity meet."

"Ya think?" she riposted, becoming even more uncomfortable about doing this as the audience had suddenly quieted down and stared when they appeared on stage.

Kevin was actually liking the idea of a crowd, of seeing people coming to watch a chess match. Tara, on the other hand, was obviously not liking it one bit. She wasn't expecting an audience, and they were definitely paying far too much attention to her as far as she was concerned. She stood very still, both arms wrapped around herself, trying to will herself invisible but unfortunately failing. Mr. Barkin looked up and saw Kevin. He spoke to the Middleton group in hushed tones, pointed at him and walked on over, followed by Mr. Amberson.

"Good work, Guberman.", he said business-like, "You're on time. Now where's the other player?"

"Uh. She's right here."

Barkin stared at Tara for a second as she smiled, then gave him a slight wave.

"Err. Hi, Mr. Barkin.", she said meekly.

Mr. Amberson looked agog.

"Now, wait a minute, Guberman. You mean to tell me that Ms. Monroe here, a cheerleader, in a cheer uniform, is going to play chess?"

"That's right, sir."

"You're kidding, right?"

Tara looked at Kevin with despairing eyes, saying in hushed tones, "I told you they wouldn't take me seriously!"

Kevin took her hand in his in reassurance, and leaned in close to her ear.

"Relax. It'll be fine.", he whispered.

He turned his attention back to Mr. Barkin, "Sir, I assure you this is no joke. I told you at the Mad Dog Picnic she could play killer chess. In fact I bet anything she'll win tonight."

Tara's eyes went wide, "Kevin! What are you saying?"

Barkin eyed him steadily, considering that statement, "That's right, Guberman. I do remember you saying that, Pretty bold claim there too. Looks like you'll get your chance for her to prove it. Say, you didn't happen to bring any other clothes with you, did you, Monroe?"

"Ehh, no, sir. Not today.", she replied anxiously.

Mr Barkin looked at them with his authoritative look, then up at the ceiling, muttering, "I see. Well, you're allowed to attend school in cheer uniform, and there's no rule against you playing in it, though it is unusual."

He turned back to Tara and said, "But I would recommend against it in the future, young lady. Understood?"

As he walked away, she gasped, "But it's not my fault!"

She looked back at Kevin, seething, "You are _so_ dead!"

"Yeah, yeah.", he mumbled, not really paying attention to her just then as he looked out at the crowd and started to size up the Lowerton team, his attention now completely on the meet, 'Shoot me later..."

"I'm not kidding around here, Kevin!", she said angrily.

"Neither am I. Look at the Lowerton team. There's a couple of new faces there, and one of them's a girl."

"Huh?", she exclaimed, her eyes whipping around to see.

That definitely caught her attention. She looked at the opposition and quickly spotted the small, mousy looking teen with no makeup and limp shoulder length brown hair, wearing large wire rim glasses. Her dark brown eyes darted around, taking in everything with smart attention. Tara could tell there was some intelligence there at least. But she was also wearing the worst drab floral print dress she ever saw, and it didn't even fit.

Tara frowned and said, "Eww! What planet did she come from?"

Kevin asked Mr. Amberson, "What's going on? This is kind of a large crowd for just a junior varsity meet, especially the first one of the year."

'Yes, so we gathered.", he replied, "But I understand that it's because of the girl on Lowerton's team. Apparently she just transferred in from outside. She's supposed to be a real genius in the hard sciences and a chess enthusiast. Her name's April Lawson. The Lowerton school paper has picked up on it and is interested in doing a story on her. It appears they've never had a girl in the chess club before. As you can see, that has sparked some interest from the parents as well."

"Genius?", asked Kevin, "What kind of genius?"

"From what I hear, she's on Justine Flanner's level."

Tara moaned, "Oh great! Now I get to be shown up by another girl! And a geek at that!"

"Hey, you're dating a geek!", Kevin complained.

"She's a girl geek! That's different!"

He rolled his eyes, "Whatever."

He turned his attention back to the opposition even as she lasered him with another glare capable of inflicting death.

"Kevin.", she said menacingly

"No, no. Wait a minute.", said Kevin, eyeing the Lowerton girl closely, "I think I know who she is."

Mr. Amberson looked at him intently, "What do you know?"

"I was playing a tournament over the summer down state. I'm sure she was there. If she's playing here, she's probably unrated like Tara, because that was a non-sanctioned tournament. But, she's pretty good, I think."

""Good?", exclaimed Tara, "Good? You drag me in cheer uniform without a shower in front of a bunch of geeky guys to get totally embarrassed by a Justine Flanner quality clone who can play killer chess and all you can say is 'good'?"

"So not the drama, Tara. I think I know how good this girl is."

"Oh, yeah? And just how bad is she going to destroy me?"

He grinned at her like a predator, "You're better... ...much better."

Her eyebrows went up a notch, then she looked back over at the other girl.

"Really?", she replied huskily as she started to reappraise her opponent. Still, she was not so sure she could accept Kevin's assessment.

About this time, the faculty adviser for Lowerton was trying to get Mr. Amberson's attention, signaling it was time to start the meet. He excused himself to help out.

Kevin said, "Wait here a minute. I'll go explain to the team."

"That should be an interesting little speech.", she said to him with half-closed eyes and crossed arms.

He ignored her and approached the three junior team players. Tara stood there like a statue, even more conscious now of the attention she was now getting as more of the audience was studying her and mumbling amongst themselves, wondering as to why she was there. As Kevin walked over to his junior varsity team, they were frowning at him as well...

"What's going on, Guberman? Where's our player? And why is the cheerleader here?"

"Yeah,", said Jeff jokingly, "Is she going to do some yells for us."

"That cheerleader.", said Kevin rather gravely, "Is your new fourth board player."

Three jaws dropped in surprise.

"That's whack!", exclaimed Jeff.

"_As if_! Are you joking, man?", butted in Paul, "That babe can play chess? I don't believe it!"

"Believe it, Paul.", said Kevin, "In fact, I'll bet she'll wipe you right off the table."

"Uh-uh.", added Richard, clearly in disbelief, "No way, man! You're playing us! All you did was get a warm body to fill the spot so we can compete!"

"Well, you got that right! She's definitely a warm body.", replied Jeff, snickering as he looked her over again, but he quailed when he looked into Kevin's hard eyes.

Cowering, he sputtered, "But she's a cheerleader, Kev! She's hot!"

"Not in this chess match, she isn't!", Kevin ranted at him, "You understand me?"

"Okay, okay! I'm sorry!", Jeff said contritely, "Didn't mean it like that!"

"Oh yes, you did.", replied the chess captain coldly, "Don't do it again."

He looked around at all three of them and said, "Look, I'm not playing you guys. I wouldn't do that. The girl's got more game than any of you ever will, and she's about to prove it. I already tutor you guys in calculus or algebra. Don't make me reconsider that arrangement. So you give her the chance and don't play around with her like that, or else. You got it?"

Seeing how serious he was, they quickly agreed in low hushed tones. Kevin went back to Tara to explain how the meet would be started. It would be a four game round robin. Each player would play a game against each of the four members of the opposing team. The two faculty advisers wrote down everybody's name on slips of paper and then put them in two boxes, each team in a box, and drew them out, making the first matches. The first match teamed Tara against one of the boys, and the advisers indicated the far left match board on the table for her and her opponent. The contestants began to settle down into their places. Kevin pulled out the chair and held it for her as she sat down across from a nervous looking freshmen with glasses and bad skin. He kept gawking at her, which started to irritate Tara very quickly.

What?", she said finally.

The kid almost jumped out of his skin, saying, "Er, I'm Gabe. Gabriel."

"Tara.", she said back to him, coldly.

Rebuffed, he became quiet again, looking around the table and the room, occasionally sneaking a glance at her. But he was obviously working up the courage to say what was on his mind, which took him about two minutes.

"Uh..."

"Yes?"

"Er, is this for real? You really play chess?"

Staring him down, she replied sarcastically, "No. I heard it was a great spectator sport. Thought I'd get some thrills."

"Huh?"

Seeing the kid was clueless, she sighed, then said, "Yes, I play chess. Why else would I be sitting across the table from you?"

"But, you're a cheerleader."

"So?"

"Well, I mean it's cool, I guess. It's just not a thing I would have expected."

She smiled cat-like at him, "Good. I hope I keep 'things' that unexpected."

Blinking wide-eyed, he didn't know how to respond to that, so he just stared at the board. Everyone settled in for the first game as the chess clocks were set up. At the signal, the clocks were started and the games were on. Tara was playing White and pushed her king pawn forward two squares. Her opponent looked at it for a moment, seemingly perplexed, and then pushed his queen knight pawn one space to the third rank. She frowned at this, wondering what the heck he was doing. What was this? A Russian styled 'Hypermodern' opening or something? She pushed her queen pawn out to join the king pawn. Then he replied with a knight move... ...to rook three.

It dawned on her as she looked up at Kevin, amazed. He mouthed a 'told you so' at her and smiled. She looked up at the stage lights in exasperation, then turned her attention back to the board. She was dealing with someone who had no knowledge of opening theory at all, an easy kill. Moving forward and almost hunching over the board, she smiled like a tiger on the hunt as she aggressively took control of the center and squeezed the poor kid straight back against his side of the board. Through two good knight forks and a bishop pin, she took his queen and a rook, then began chasing his king around with her own queen. On the twenty-second move, his king trapped in a disfigured maze of his king side pawns, she attacked and nailed him with her knight.

"Checkmate.", she softly announced.

Gabriel's eyes nearly popped out of his head, quickly followed by every other eye in the room. He hadn't even realized the mating position was there. Tara sat back in her chair, legs crossed, a contented smile on her face. The Lowerton freshman looked on in numbed horror at the wanton and massive destruction she had inflicted upon his forces. The audience began to talk quietly as she waited an appropriate time for him to comprehend the vastness of his defeat, and then got up from her chair to face him. The crowd began to clap tepidly for Middleton's first victory. This was not unexpected as it was mostly a Lowerton crowd... ...but they clapped. The Lowerton news team was another matter. At first they had ignored her, thinking she was just a gimmick. They were here to cover a girl who could play chess. Now they realized she was no gimmick, and they liked the idea of covering a knockout blond cheerleader who could really play chess, even if it was from the rival school. They started to look at Tara like a lion would look at an ibex.

Smiling like the Cheshire Cat, Tara held out her hand to her first victim and shook hands, his own now as limp as a squid, as she said, "Good game."

He gazed back at her, stunned, and mumbled the same reply back. Looking at the clock off stage, Tara saw she had destroyed him in less than fifteen minutes. The other six players now eyed her in as much shock as her victim had, not believing how quickly she had won. April Lawson's eyes bored into her from pure envy before she slowly turned her attention back to her game with Jeff.

Kevin stood behind the side curtain off stage with his arms crossed, the rapacious grin on his face shining ferociously across the way. He was quietly chuckling to himself as Tara joined him while the other games continued. Trying not to attract any more attention than she could, she leaned in and whispered excitedly into his ear...

"This is _so_ not a problem! I've been watching the others, too. Only one or two of those guys have any idea of how to open!"

"See. I told you there would be no problem getting onto the team.", he whispered back, smiling, "Most Class E players barely have rudimentary knowledge of openings, if any. If they did, their play would reflect it and they'd be higher rated. All you have to do is take these guys out and you are on easy street to the A-Team!"

"But winning against these guys doesn't prove much. Is it really enough to make varsity?"

"Listen. When the round robin is over and if there's a tie, the two top players will play one more match for the medal. I'm already betting that's going to be you and Paul Gertz there. He actually does have a pretty good command of openings, but his rating's still low because he hadn't played enough games against higher rated players. He'll be a little more work, but you can take him, too. The guys on varsity know he's good enough to play with them. With a win against him and the round robin first place medal, they'll let you in, no 'prob'."

She looked at the other three boards being played, frowning a bit, "Okay, Guberman. I'll hold you to that. There's still Lawson. She seems to know what she's doing."

"Yeah. She knows opening theory pretty well. But I told you. You can take her."

"But she's genius level, Kevin! She's gotta be scorching in chess."

"Hey, she may be genius level in physics or whatever, but she doesn't have your three dimensional spatial comprehension. You'll win."

"Don't play me, Kevin." she said in a warning voice.

"I'm not!" he said firmly, grabbing onto her arms and making her look at him.

"You! Are! That! Good!" he said very pointedly, still smiling.

She gazed back at April Lawson, worry in her eyes, before she relaxed and looked back him with resigned eyes, saying, "Okay. I guess we'll see."

Kevin smiled confidently at her. Suddenly, flash strobes began to blind them as the Lowerton news team pounced from behind. They had sneaked out of the audience and entered the stage through one of the side doors. Tara looked up in surprise as a smarmy looking kid in a bow tie walked up, thrusting a tape recorder up to her face and talking.

"Hi, there! I'm Chip Lowe, of the Lemur Ledger. We're really impressed with your initial win here today. You certainly have started strong! What's your name? How did a cheerleader ever start playing chess? Cool outfit! You are a cheerleader, aren't you?"

Trying to shield her eyes and retreating, Tara bit back at the sudden intrusion, "Duh! What tipped you off? The Nike's?

"Well, I mean, of course you are!", he laughed defensively, "I just wanted to confirm that. Hey, you played a mean game on poor Gabe back there. Was it part of your strategy to wear your cheer uniform as a psych tactic?"

Her face started turning red, but before she could verbally, or physically, tear the kid's head off, Kevin grabbed him by the arm and dragged him back towards the door.

"Hey! She doesn't need any tactics to win except good chess play, and she'll prove that. But listen, you're here to cover your players, not ours."

"And pass up a story on her? That's whack, man! Everybody's going to eat up a story about a hottie like her beating nerds at their own game!"

The exchange was gaining some attraction from the audience and the officials. Mr. Barkin, looking quite annoyed, came over and spoke out forcefully, "Quiet, people! Take it outside! No cameras in the auditorium while games are in play!"

Kevin and the news team looked at Tara. Her look confirmed she had no intention whatsoever of 'taking it outside'. When that became clear, the photographers shut down their rigs with some mumbling, especially after a quick glance at Mr. Barkin. Kevin turned back to the reporter.

In a hushed voice, he said, "Look, I suggest that if _you_ don't want to be whacked, you go cover your original story. And believe me, as a cheerleader, she can deliver."

The kid looked over at Tara, whose eyes were now firing electric blue bolts of lightning his way.

Reconsidering his plan he said, "Uh, yeah. I see your point.", and he shut off his tape recorder, stowed it, and went back to his seat, followed by his photographers. But Kevin could see they kept eyeing her. They were not going to give up that easily.

Mr. Barkin turned to Tara, "Monroe, try to act with a little more decorum and not cause these distractions. I don't want to have to disqualify you for creating a public disturbance."

Her eyes went big, "But! But!"

"Oh, and isn't that perfume a bit strong?."

Tara almost screamed in frustration.

Barkin leaned over to Kevin and whispered, "You'll make sure she learns how to dress for these matches, right?"

"Uh, yeah. Sure thing, Mr. Barkin."

"Good. See to it."

With that he went back on stage to monitor the competition table. Kevin looked back at Tara, still growling, her angry eyes now turned on him.

"I told you!", she fumed at him, "Oh! You are _so_ worse than dead!"

He sighed, "I know, I know. You'll shoot me later."

She didn't bother to answer him, ready to explode. But she knew she couldn't afford to stay mad for long. It took her five minutes, but she did calm down, mainly by concentrating on how the rest of the games were being played. There was a large display above the players showing each game board, allowing the audience to follow. Just as the last game of the first round was finishing up, the next draw was made from the paper slip boxes. This time, Tara found herself matched against the other girl, which caused more of a stir amongst the crowd, the novelty of course being the females playing each other. Kevin again held her chair out for her, as one of April's team mates did the same for her. They sat down as the clocks were being set, eyeing each other warily.

April Lawson sat forward, briefly studying at the pieces before looking back up at Tara.

"That's quite a perfume. Use it much?"

Tara blinked. 'Was that a cut?', she thought. It certainly sounded like it. Or was this a pre-game strategy to shake her?

She smiled slightly as she answered, "Oh, yes. My favorite. You might consider using some yourself."

The girl's smirk fell a bit.

"Yes, it 's seems just as appropriate as your outfit.", she commented, "Is that your usual chess playing ensemble?"

Tara's eyes narrowed, "Actually, no. I felt I should dress conservatively for my first tournament."

The girl knew a cut when she heard it too, apparently. April looked peeved, and was about to reply, when Mr. Barkin slapped the chess clock down on the table next to their board with a sharp rap.

"Are you ladies ready to play or not?", he hissed warningly.

Leers of death silently screamed between them, but both quietly said nothing more than "yes".

Standing beside her and grinning as he listened, Kevin bent down and whispered in her ear, "Are you trying to channel some 'Bon-Bon' here?"

She snapped back at him in a hushed voice, "Only in self-defense! And don't think you're off the hook, Mr. 'they're-supposed-to-be-here-to-play-chess-not-look-at-you'!"

"Riiiiiiiight.", he said, and he slunk away to avoid further verbal bloodshed.

As Kevin withdrew, she regretted sniping at him like that, but it wasn't like she didn't warn him. She looked at her opponent, staring back at her angrily, and no matter how optimistic Kevin was about her abilities, she worried how she was going to survive playing a chess enthusiast of genius level, and it didn't help that every male member of the audience seemed to be staring at every bare part of her anatomy, not to mention the rest of her.


	5. Chapter 4

**Author's Note: If you are aren't a chess player, don't worry about the moves and go with the text, but if you do know how to play chess, I invite you to pull out your chess board and play along. The game demonstrated here is an actual game played between Wilhelm Stenitz (1836 - 1900) and his opponent Kurt Von Bardeleben at Hastings, England in 1895. Steinitz played the white pieces. Wilhelm Steinitz is recognized as the first World Chess Champion, winning it in a match against Johannes Zuckertort in 1886. He had already been considered the best player in the world since 1866 since he defeated Adolf Andersson in a match that year. He successfully defended his title four times before losing it to Emanual Lasker in 1896. His distinctive contribution to the game of chess was his scientific approach to the study of it. I hope you enjoy it, as well as Kevin's and Tara's story. The commentary on the game itself is my own analysis. Game Notation-! means an excellent move. ? means a poor move. ****† means the King is in check.**

**Chapter Four**

**First Exchanges**

Steely looks subsided as the girls grudgingly diverted their attention back to the contest. The clock was started. Tara stared momentarily at the chess board considering what her initial strategy should be since she had drawn the white pieces again. What little she saw of the girl's play suggested she seemed to know basic opening strategy, but Kevin had reassured her she was probably not that well versed on every variation of the major openings. Something told her that was the key. Another good piece of information came from what she saw of the first game her opponent played against Jeff, which the girl won. She definitely was not the aggressive type in the beginning. Kevin told her that philosophy seemed very Russian in character, which made her wonder who had tutored her. Nonetheless, she decided to start cautiously, staying traditional and opting for a King Pawn opening.

1) P-K4...P-K4

2) N-KB3...N-QB3

3) B-B4...B-B4

'Okay.', she thought, 'A classic Giuoco Piano, the Quiet Game.' The opening decided, the game developed into its middle stages.

4) P-B3...N-B3

5) P-Q4...PxP

6) PxP...B-N5†

7) N-B3...

Here, Tara's king pawn was vulnerable. That was because its only protecting piece was the knight, which was pinned. However, that was a trap. Tara was hoping her opponent would go for it. If she did, it would open up the King file and she could pin the enemy knight against its king. Subsequent moves would even out the material advantage yet leave Black badly out of position. But her opponent apparently saw the trap and didn't take the bait. Even so, this was fine with Tara. This enabled her to go into a obscure variation, one she was sure the girl was not going to know well, if at all.

7)xxxx...P-Q4

8) PxP...KNxP

9 ) 0 - 0...B-K3

10) B-KN5...B-K2

Tara could see Black was trying to keep the jockeying stable between the minor pieces. In her place she would have done the same. Once they traded pieces, Black was hoping to take advantage of White's exposed and unsupported queen pawn. The exchanges began.

11) BxN...QBxB

12) NxB...QxN

13) BxB...NxB

Tara smiled. She had been right. The girl was smart, but definitely was unfamiliar with this variation on the Giuoco Piano, and it presented her with the opportunity for which she was searching. The exchanges forced the remaining black knight to capture her bishop directly in front of the black king. That's when White pounced, pinning the knight.

14) R-K1...P-KB3

Black had a problem. The knight could not move due to the pin, and Black could not castle to move her king out of the way and relieve the pin, or she would lose the knight. All she could do was try to create a place for her king to move and let the rooks support from behind. But it would cost extra moves.

15) Q-K2...Q-Q2

16) QR-B1...P-B3?

Tara sat up and frowned. Black had moved the bishop pawn up to support it with the knight pawn next to it since the queen was busy protecting the knight against the doubled threat along the king file from White's queen and rook. She did not remember this move as part of Black's defense and it worried her initially.

Then she grinned ferociously. April Lawson had finally made a mistake.

17) P-Q5!...

As Tara slowly reached over and pushed the queen pawn up, the crowd started to murmur excitedly. It was a sacrifice. But it was one that would spell disaster for Black. The girl had no choice but to take it, or lose the bishop pawn and valuable positioning.

17)xxxx...PxP

Now Black was forced to confront White's rook on the queen bishop file and to waste moves getting the king out of the way of the pin to save her knight. This allowed White to attack, pushing her knight deep in the enemy camp.

18) N-Q4...K-B2

19) N-K6...KR-QB1

20) Q-N4...

This was the final stroke of genius in Tara's plan. A reverse pin by the white queen against the black queen through white's knight exposed her to mortal danger should the knight move out of the way by checking the black king. Even if the black queen could move out of the way, the white queen attacked further on the diagonal to the black king rook, threatening to consume it instead. The final blow was that the black king could not move anywhere the white knight couldn't attack, which would force the pin anyway. No matter what Black did, when the knight moved and checked the black king, Black would be forced to move the king, leaving White free to capture the enemy queen or rook without recompense.

April Lawson looked at the positioning with increasing dread, slowly realizing how desperate her position was when she worked out the possible responding moves. She didn't even try to look up at Tara, who sat quietly with her eyes half-closed, a slight smile playing on her lips, her entire poise like a panther ready to close in on her prey. Sighing, April played the only move she could think of doing, pushing the king knight pawn up in hopes she could interpose her bishop pawn between the two queens. But it was too late. The end game began in earnest.

20)xxxx...P-KN3

21) N-N5†...

Black could not capture the knight. The queen would be lost if she did. She moved to protect her queen instead.

21)xxxx...K-K1

22) RxN...

The crowd moaned their surprise at Tara's next sacrifice, revealing the second angle of attack of the double pin. Even the players of the other games were staring at their board, wasting their own game time on the clocks. If Black captured with her king, then White would bring her remaining rook over to the king file and force either checkmate or the loss of the black queen. If Black captured with her queen, White would take her rook with her own, causing check and then win both black rooks, leaving White ahead a full knight and having positional advantage for the end game. Frantically, Black tried to find a way out, desperately trying to get her king out of the line of fire.

22)xxxx...K-B1

23) R-B7†!...

Again the crowd moaned approval and clapped. At this point, it was clear Tara was just teasing her catch before killing it. Even April Lawson could sense the game spiraling out of control. Even with the change in position, Black could not capture the rook with his king for then she would still lose her queen. If she captured the rook with the queen, then she would again lose both of her rooks with White checking the king and being a full knight up and in positional advantage, exactly as before. Her only option was to still to get the king out of danger through moving it. She continued to weave the piece back and forth out of the way, hoping that White would make some sort of mistake.

23)xxxx...K-N1

24) R-N7†...K-R1

25) RxP†...K-N1

26) R-N7†...K-R1

27) Q-R4†...

Unexpectedly, White released the pin, but it was part of the plan. Black was actually forced to take the white rook in yet another sacrifice by White. This only revealed the next pin by the White Queen.

27)xxxx...KxR

28) Q-R7†...

The end came quickly as Black could do nothing against the onslaught of the White Queen, forcing her king back across the board.

28)K-B1...

29) Q-R8†...K-K2

30) Q-N7†...K-K1

31) Q-N8†...K-K2

32) Q-B7†...K-Q2

33) Q-B8†...Q-K1

Finally released to act, the Black Queen interposed herself to protect her King, but it was too late.

34) N-B7†...K-Q2

35) Q-Q6...

Against the dead calm and quiet, everyone heard Tara very softly utter the fatal word.

"Checkmate."

April Lawson's face drained whiter than the formica of the table as the crowd broke out into brisk applause. She stared at the board in disbelief as Tara rose up and reached out with her hand, the predator's grin still on her face. April blinked at her hand and slowly stood, accepting the gesture languidly, still staring at the board.

As Tara gave it a couple of shakes, she leaned in and quietly said, "You really should try some eyeliner and mascara. Might help your game."

She smiled as sweetly as she could as she turned on one heel and walked off the stage, the applause following her all the way. Kevin was standing off to one side, beaming, clapping vigorously and loud in his acclaim. She glided right up to him, took his hand, headed out the side door into the hallway, and kept on going, the sounds of applause following them.

When they got far enough away that she was sure no one would hear them, she shrieked, grabbed him, and kissed him hard. When she let go, there was such a look of feral glee on her face.

"Did you see that?", she yelled, "Oh! That felt _so_ good! She never knew what hit her!"

Kevin held on to her and laughed, "I told you so!"

"Oh, Kevin! I really didn't think I could do this until now! This is so cool! I can play these guys!"

"Of course, you can! There was no doubt in my mind!"

"Oh, yeah! And against someone with brains like her, doing things I can't think of doing."

"Hey!", he said sharply, stopping her short.

"What?"

Taken aback, she stared at him.

"Don't do that, Tara.", he said sternly, "I told you once before never to let anybody ever tell you that you aren't smart enough to do anything like Justine or this girl. That includes yourself. You are better than these guys. And it's because you have the brains to beat them in any way you want, including someone like April Lawson."

She looked into his eyes, wrapping herself in his concern, feeling the emotion he was trying to express to her, and wanting to understand fully his conviction about her intelligence.

"You really mean that, don't you?"

"You better believe it!"

"So you're serious?"

"Is the Pope Catholic?"

"You're Jewish."

His serious look faded away, and he grinned lopsidedely.

"Whatever.", he replied.

Slowly they laughed and she leaned in and kissed him a good long while before gently letting go.

"Come on, BF.", she said contentedly, "I've got a round robin to win here."

He chuckled, "Got that right. So, does that mean I get a reprieve from the execution?"

She eyed him voraciously as she replied, "I'll think about it."

Wonderfully, the rest of the meet went as predicted. Somehow, the audience seemed to grow as time went on. Somebody had been making calls and the auditorium began to fill with more spectators, including some Middleton High folks. Tara's next two opponents both went down in flames within thirty minutes each, and a palpable air of fright and dejection was filling the Lowerton team. April Lawson was so thrown by the flogging Tara had given her, she also lost to Paul Gertz. Tara's team mates soon had approached her, eagerly introducing themselves and congratulating her on her wins. Under Kevin's watchful eye, they didn't make any comments about her cheerleader status. But he didn't have to worry. They were just glad they were able to compete and win. At the end of the meet, as Kevin predicted, both Tara and Paul had four wins each, and the board was set up for them to play for the gold medal game. The entire auditorium was now completely full of spectators, most of them from Middleton High. Tara played black against Paul's white pieces, and she smiled ferociously when he played the king pawn first. She launched the Sicilian and then went into the classic dragon variation when he played against it conservatively, both players concentrating intently on the game over the next fifty-two minutes. By then, she had him, and he pondered the final position for five more minutes before he finally conceded defeat. As they shook hands, the entire auditorium broke out into a wild cheer and applause, joined by the rest of the Middleton players who also clapped loudly, looking at Tara with a very new found respect. They knew now the girl definitely came to play.

Mr. Amberson addressed the crowd with the Lowerton High advisor at his side. He had to clear his throat several times until the crowd settled down.

"Ladies and gentlemen. Let me welcome you to this round robin meet of the junior varsity chess clubs from both our high schools. I just want to say how pleased we are that there is such an interest in the game and ask that you support all our players in the competitions to come. Thank you.

"Now without further delay, I would like to present the chess meet junior varsity medal to the winner, Miss Tara Monroe."

There was another round of clapping as Tara stepped forward and accepted the medal from Mr. Amberson. Just as she did, a rash of flashes went off. Three photographers from the school paper appeared out of nowhere and began taking pictures. Irritated that the Lemur shutterbugs were back, she started to tell them to get lost when she saw it wasn't them. This galled Tara to no end when she realized they came from the Middleton High paper, and she wondered how they knew she was here. Of course, the Lowerton news hounds were not to be left out either, trying to squeeze in and get their shots.

She felt like such a dork now, up there on stage taking a chess medal from the chess club adviser in her cheer uniform. The Lemur newshound kid looked ready to come at her again too. Fortunately it only took one more leer of death to make him drop that idea, quick, so she only had to contend with the photographers. Once they finished she motioned for Kevin to come up and join her. The crowd started dispersing as the players packed up the chess boards and equipment. Tara was still looking disparagingly at the photographers, wishing they had never come when she recognized one of them, Jim Eubanks. She smirked.

"Hey, Jim!" she called out, "Get what you came for?"

He grinned from ear to ear, "With this shot? It's front page all the way! Listen, one of the reporters will probably get back to you in a couple of days or so. This will make a great story!"

'That's going to happen, like NEVER!', she thought to herself.

"Yeah, just great.", she replied in a strained voice, "So how did you know about this?"

"You know I can't reveal my sources.", he said as he finished packing up.

"I also know your girlfriend, Jim. And she doesn't know you've been hitting on Liz."

She stood there staring at him, arms crossed, tapping her foot on the stage floor.

Eyes wide and pale, he gulped at first then said,"Er. All I can say is, you might want to check up on your squad mates! Bye!"

He left as quickly as he could before she could get in another question.

Kevin said, "Boy, you know how to hit hard."

"When the occasion calls for it.", she muttered angrily.

"Remind me not to ever make you mad."

"No prob. You'll know it as soon as you wake up."

"Riiiiight. You are kidding, aren't you?"

She turned to him and smiled, her anger abating and saying playfully, "Probably."

"Uh-huh.", he answered, smiling back warily, "I'll keep that in mind."

She looked back at the door Jim Eubanks had exited with a sour demeanor and muttered, "But I wonder who spilled. Squad mates, huh?"

The light bulb flashed in both their heads. They looked at each other and said, "Bonnie!"

"How'd she know?", Kevin asked, annoyed.

Tara was even more cranked now. They headed out of the auditorium for the parking lot and his car.

"Oh! I am _so_ going to get her for this! She knows I play chess with you, and she probably checked the calender for events when I ditched practice and found out the round robin was today."

"Is that going to cause any problems?"

"No, I don't think so.", she said dejectedly, "What she does or thinks doesn't bother me anymore. She and the rest of the 'Food Chain' can go stick it as far as I'm concerned!... ...but I know she's going to play it all over the school, not to mention with the rest of the cheer squad."

"Anything I can do to help?"

"Nah. It'll blow over. Besides, if I'm going to continue to compete, they're just going to have to get used to it."

Kevin looked at her and grinned, "Good. So you enjoyed this?"

They were alone in the hallway so, she gazed at him knowingly, putting her arms around him with a sly smirk on her face, saying, "What? You didn't think I would enjoy beating the stuffing out of a bunch of geeky guys, and one geeky girl like dirty rugs?"

"Oooh, you are cruel!", he replied, chuckling, "I am definitely going to be careful around you."

"You better be! Now, what about varsity?"

"We meet Tuesday afternoons. I'll introduce you."

"Good. The paper doesn't come out until the following Friday, so it won't be front page news until then."

"Yeah. I've asked the guys here not to say anything yet. I want to surprise the varsity club like I did them."

"That's a full week away. Won't this get out before then?"

"With those guys? They're so into their stuff, they wouldn't notice a tornado hitting the school building for at least a month!"

"That bad, huh?"

"What can I say? We're geeks."

"Now wait a minute.", she said frowning, "If I can't tell myself I'm not smart enough. You can't call yourself a geek. Got it?"

He looked at her, the serious face she put on mirroring the one he gave her earlier. He smiled...

"Sure. Got me there."

"Not that I really have anything against geeks, deep down, you know."

"I know.", he chuckled.

"It's only that they're strange, wear weird clothes, have four eyes."

"Tara."

She giggled, "Hey, you know I'm playing you."

"Yeah, I know.", he said with a relaxed smile, "Okay, I'll come get you after school Tuesday for the club meeting."

"I'm _not_ wearing my cheer uniform for that.", she said firmly.

"Okay, okay!", he said laughing, "Besides, you won't need it to beat the stuffing out of them, like a rug beater, huh?"

They both laughed at the image of Tara wielding a rug beater with the chess team members hanging from a clothes line on pins. And of course, she was dressed in her cheer uniform.

* * *

Chess club met every week on Tuesday afternoons after school in the algebra classroom. The twelve boys in the varsity chess club sat down together in small clusters of twos and threes, concentrating on their separate games. Mr. Amberson was there as well, and was busy going over a complicated position with one of the boys on his own chess board when Kevin walked in.

"Hey, Kev!", cried one of them, a smaller boy named Dave Ponders who wore horn rimmed glasses and had frizzy brown hair that stuck out everywhere.

"About time you made it. What kept you? You said you were going to help me out with that Nimzo-Indian defense variation."

"Yeah. Hey, Dave.", Kevin replied glumly, "Hey, guys."

The others turned and greeted him in a mixture of grunts, hand waves and other sounds, then quickly refocused their attention to their boards. Kevin studied them as he got his board out and readied it. There was Sergei Radovsky, the exchange student from Russia with long black hair and brooding demeanor, who was better than everyone else here except Kevin. Jermaine Hall was a straight 'A' math genius, a nice black kid who played good King Pawn openings. He also weighed close to 250 pounds which made him a little scary to play when you saw him sit across the table from you, especially if he was eating at the same time. Jordan Cross was a tall wiry kid who looked, and was, uncoordinated and a bucktoothed to boot. But he was a computer programming whiz, smart as a whip, and still played a mean game. The dumb look he effected on his features when he played had made more than one opponent misjudge him. The others in the club all fit the same geeky profile in one way or another and Kevin had always considered them his friends. The way they looked never bothered him. But now, he was a little self-conscious. Judging from the reaction the junior varsity initially gave him, he wasn't sure how they were going to take this.

Dave asked, "Well, how about it, Kev? Are we going to do this or not?"

"Yeah, in a little bit, Dave. I've got something to do right now as captain."

He turned back to face the group and cleared his throat. Once he had their attention, he started his speech.

"Listen up, guys. As you know, we've been wanting to increase membership in the Chess Club for the last year and longer. Now, we've done really well, having won the last Tri-City Chess championships three out of the last five years, including the last two years in a row. But we haven't been able to recruit any new members since we were sophomores, except for Sergei of course."

Recognizing his joining the club, the chess club members clapped. Sergei smiled and waved in appreciation, "_Spacibo_. Thank you."

Jordan replied, "Hey, we've done all right, Kevin. I mean, of course we could use some new blood, but even without them, we can still whip any Tri-City team that dares challenge us."

Everyone joined in, all talking and vocalizing their agreement. Kevin put his hands up to quiet them down again.

"I wouldn't be so sure.", said Kevin, "Upperton High got Reginald Cockcroft from out of state. He's a class B player, and a strong one at that."

"So what?", answered Jermaine as he munched on a hero sandwich, "You can take him!"

'Yeah!" said many others in near unison, high fiving and mumbling their confidence. Kevin had to quiet them down again...

"Maybe, But it's still going to be tough. I really want this next one, guys. Nobody's ever pulled a three-peat in the history of the championship. And it would be nice if we had some more good players."

Dave piped up, "Well that's great, Kev. But you know how hard we've tried getting new blood into the club before. It's tough finding people who can play the game well. It's just not that popular like it is in Russia."

"Quite true", added Sergei, "It is shame, really."

"Yeah, I know, Sergei. But the reason I brought it up is because, well, I wanted to tell you that I have found a new player who's really good, and wants to try out for the competition team."

For a second, there wasn't a sound in the room. Then...

"What!", said Jordan, coming out of chair. So did everyone else, standing up and facing Kevin, surprised and excited, jabbering questions at him.

"What player?"

"How good is he?"

"Where'd you find him?"

"Have you played him?"

Kevin held his hands up again as they crowded around, "Hey, Guys! Guys! Give me a break here. I'll introduce you, okay? Look. Last Friday, Jay Pollack was out sick with mono for the junior varsity meet with Lowerton, and I managed to get this new player to substitute. Uh, she also won the meet hands down, and is waiting outside as we speak."

The room fell silent again. For ten seconds nobody spoke, as what he said hit them.

"She?" said Jermaine, "He's a she? You're telling us you found a girl who wants to play on the chess team? And she's good?"

They all started snickering among themselves.

"What girl do you know that plays chess, Kevin?", said Dave, laughing, "She must be four-eyed, and look like Old Lady Maguire's evil twin sister!"

"Zip it, Dave!", Kevin retorted at him in irritation, shocking them all in silence, "You will treat her with the same respect she or anybody else deserves here. You got that?"

Stunned, they all muttered their acquiescence, "Yeah, sure, whatever."

Dave added, "Sorry, Kev, I was only joking around, you know."

"Yeah, like the cheerleaders and the jocks kid about us, right?"

Dave frowned, "Hey! Fair's fair, Kev. They do it to us!"

"That doesn't mean we have to do it to them. Now I want you to treat this girl right. Or you'll answer to me. As captain, I still have a say on who plays on the competition team."

"Sure, Kevin", said Jermaine, "No damage, okay? But who is this girl? And is she really that good? Did she just transfer in or something?"

"No, no. She's been here the whole time. She just hadn't been playing for other reasons. But now she's interested in picking back up on her game. And yes, I have played her, and yes, she is that good! Good enough in my opinion to beat all you guys."

That got their attention, shocking them again to silence.

"What?", yelled Jermaine in shocked disbelief.

"No freakin' way, man!", added Dave.

"Now wait a minute, Kevin.", Jordan said warily, "I don't know of any girl who can play chess anywhere near that good, much less one that has that much interest in it. Girls just don't play chess."

"Sure they do.', said Kevin, "There just aren't that many of them out there as there are boys."

"Good ones? Maybe in Russia. But here?"

"Well, she beat Paul Gertz in the meet."

"That's bogus! She had to have gotten lucky! What'd she play?"

Kevin smiled evilly, "The Sicilian... ..as black."

"Wha?", exclaimed Jordan, "Paul's specialty is taking apart Sicilians as White!"

"Exactly.", continued Kevin in a smooth oily voice, "and she took him down."

That raised eyebrows, and nobody had a snappy comeback.

Dave became impatient and said, "Okay! Fine, Kevin! Let's meet her and see what she can do."

"Who is she?", asked Jordan.

Kevin suddenly stopped smiling and grimaced slightly.

"Uh, well. Tara Monroe."

Dave's face furrowed in concentration, "Wait a minute. Tara Monroe, Tara. I know that name. There's that gorgeous blond cheerleader named Tara, right? But that can't... ...be her...

"NO!"

His eyes opened wide, "You got to be kidding! You don't mean!"

Kevin smirked, "Uh, yeah, that's her."

Every mouth in the room dropped wide open, except Mr. Amberson's, who was grinning as much as Kevin was.

"But! But! Kevin!_ Cheerleaders don't play chess!_", sputtered Jordan, and the rest of the club mumbled their agreement with that statement.

Kevin chuckled slyly, "Well, this one does."

As they gazed wide eyed at him, he went to the door and opened it. He whispered outside, motioning for someone to come inside, and very timidly, Tara walked through the door and stood very still by the entrance, her eyes just as anxiously round as every other chess club member there. She wore a conservative white blouse and mid length skirt, her hair tied back in a pony tail. She held her chess set tightly in both hands in front of her.

Nobody moved, the whole chess club doing nothing but gawking at her. Even dressed conservatively of course, the girl was a knockout, and they'd never been this close to someone of that caliber of physical stature before this. Tara felt like she had suddenly landed on a different planet, having no idea how to respond to this reception. She remained completely still, unsure of what to make of these... ...boys. Seeing nobody was going to make the first move, Kevin cleared his throat and started the introductions.

"O!-kay! Everyone, This is Tara."

She raised her hand and gave them a very small wave, weakly saying, "Hi".

"And this is Jordan, and Jermaine. This is Dave. He's our resident club clown."

Dave frowned and replied, "Oh, now you rub it in, Guberman!"

Kevin chuckled, "In a good way, Dave. You know I'm just kidding. Now, that's Sergei, and you know Mr. Amberson."

One by one he introduced the members of the club and each managed a timid 'hi' or 'hello' as he did.

When he finished, he clapped his hands together and, "Good!. Let's get down to it. Tara, why don't you go ahead and set up over there by Jermaine's board and I'm going to help Dave out with a little problem he's having, and I'll be right back.

She looked at him, still very unsure about all this, but said, "Er, okay. Right over there?

"Yeah, that's fine. You'll be okay?"

"Uh, sure."

Kevin went off with Dave to where his chess set was set up as Tara put her board down and opened up the pouch with the chess men. Everyone else stiffly went back to what they had been previously doing, clearly tense. As she started to put the pieces in position, Tara looked at Jermaine's board. He had the standard Staunton men on a large plastic sheet with green and white squares. He was in the middle of a game with a smaller boy, a freshman by his looks. The big kid looked over at her every now and then, looking puzzled, but he kept averting his eyes every time she looked back, trying to act as if he really was paying attention to his game. But it was fairly obvious that everyone there were was paying far more attention to her than to their games, save Kevin and Mr. Amberson, and this started to bother her. They continued to sneak further glimpses of her in wonder and disbelief when they thought she wasn't looking. As she started setting her pieces up, she looked back at Jermaine again. He was now idly playing with his queen bishop pawn as if trying to decide whether to move it or not.

This began to really annoy her. Initially, she had really been worried about meeting the team, having no idea how she was going to be able to measure up as a chess player. The way they regarded her when she first walked in certainly didn't reassure her, and her distress was increasing as they kept looking at her like some weirdo. She definitely did not want to be looked at as the 'dumb blond' trying to fit in with all the 'braniac' types, especially geeks. Even though she expressed those concerns to him, Kevin had reassured her she had nothing to worry about. But no matter what he said, she was still anxious about it. Being in the middle of a group of some of the nerdiest guys in the school who might just show her up, and show her up badly, was not conducive to her confidence right then. She began to seriously wonder 'What am I doing here?'

Kevin had tried to anticipate this, preparing her beforehand by filling her in on the all the guys. He let her know what they looked like and what their personalities would be. He knew she wouldn't be used to being around guys like his friends who were not the 'usual' type of boys with whom she normally associated. She started to recall all this as she looked around the room, and she began to relax when she realized something...

They were actually more unsettled and timid about her than she was about them. She mentally berated herself. She should have known from the beginning, but just wasn't sure how geeks would react. Now she was.

"Boys.", she muttered to herself, and smiled, thinking, 'They're all the same.'

It was time to properly handle the male species. Losing her timidity at this point, she finished setting up the white pieces and started with the black chessmen, saying across the table, "Uh, Jermaine? Right?"

Surprised she addressed him, he turned around in his chair and faced her, "Er, right! That's my name."

"Well, you'll tell me if my third eye has turned purple, won't you?"

Jermaine stared at her, paralyzed.

"Excuse me?"

"Well, I mean the way all you guys are looking at me, I must have developed my third eye again, along with my three extra legs and six arms. So I'm assuming you'll tell me if you see something wrong, won't you? I'd hate to be caught that way without fixing my make-up."

He blushed so hard that even his dark skin showed it. Everyone else followed the conversation and looked red faced as well, except Kevin who simply grinned and turned his attention back to Dave's board.

"Oh.", Jermaine said somewhat ruefully, "Uh, yeah. Sorry about that. Its just..."

She interrupted him, "It's just that if you're going to ogle me, you're going to miss out on playing that Keres Variation on the Ruy Lopez that you're thinking about. Because if you do it, you better make sure Black's queen side is weak enough for you to succeed.

Jermaine's head snapped back in shock, "Wha? How did you..."

His opponent, a near sighted freshman with thick lensed glasses, also looked up in surprise. Tara came over and plucked the pawn right out of Jermaine's hand, pointing it at him as she explained.

"Look.", she said authoritatively, "Here's the deal. Before you play pawn to queen bishop four here, you have wait until his queen knight pawn has been pushed forward all the way. That's breaks up the pawn line and weakens it so the pawns can't easily support each other. He would have to move the knight out of the way of the bishop pawn to allow it to come up and support the others, but if he does that, he loses the knight's power on the center."

She pointed at the board with the pawn as she began to move pieces around, demonstrating her explanation of how the Keres attack could take out the weakened queen side in that situation. Then she moved the pieces back to the game's original position before she started moving them again, proceeding to explain a second variation that could also take advantage of a weakened Black queen side in the Ruy Lopez. As she did, everyone else, including Dave, stopped what they were doing and slowly gathered over Jermaine's board, quietly listening to her, eyes bugging out and mouths hanging slightly open in stunned silence. She had them eating out of her hand by the time she completed her discourse.

"So that's why you need to wait until Black has moved those pawns up that way before trying that attack.", she said, finishing up.

The room was quiet as death as the boys stared at her in sheer disbelief.

Kevin was barely holding it in, covering his mouth with his hand, starting to double over. Tara looked at him in pure disdain.

"I guess my third eye already appeared and turned purple, huh?", she said.

He chuckled, "Well, I did notice the four legs and six arms first."

"Okay, smart mouth.", she said, challenging him and smiling, "Next game we play will cost you big."

He lost it then, laughing with abandon.

"Wait! One moment, please!", cried out Sergei, his thickly accented English cutting through the mumbling as the rest of the members of the chess club had started a brisk discussion of Tara's incredible speech amongst themselves.

"Now, in my country, we have wery guud women chess playerz. Clearly, you have knowledge, yes? I would like then, see how you play. A game? _Pazhaluysta, _please."

He gestured a hand towards his board in a rather gallant air as Tara smiled and chuckled.

"Okay, Sergei. Nice to see someone here has some manners.", she said with a smirk as the entire team colored again. Kevin had to practically strangle himself to keep from totally losing it again in front of his friends, and he was sure they probably would not appreciate it. But he was _soooo_ loving how Tara was handling them like an expert puppetmaster. Sergei pulled the chair out and seated her, then went around to his position and sat down. After a few moments, Kevin managed to control himself and walked over to the game board, everyone else watching in rapt attention. Tara sat down comfortably and crossed her legs, putting her hands in her lap and sitting slightly erect.

Sergei sat forward and considered the chessmen as she did, but he did look up briefly before he fixed his attention on the board again, moving his white King Pawn forward.

"I play many women back home, beautiful as you.", he said, smiling, "It will not work with me."

She smiled confidently at him.

"Smart move, Sergei.", she purred as she opened with her favorite, the Sicilian, "I'm glad now I can be sure that it was only my chess skills that beat you."

Everyone 'ooohed' as his eyes widened slightly, "_Horosho!_ Good! Then we shall see."

And for the next two hours, they played, slowly considering their moves. It was a close contest, but in the end, Tara's queen side attack barely beat out Sergei's king side advance to threaten queening her knight pawn where he could not prevent it. On the 54th move, he sighed deeply and slowly tipped his king over.

He looked at her from playfully suspicious eyes and said, smiling slyly, "You have tricked me. You are much better than you seem."

The rest of the chess club hooted and clapped, some of them shaking Tara's hand and congratulating her. That broke the ice and there was no question now that Tara would be accepted as someone who could play the game. After that, everyone relaxed a whole lot more and enjoyed the rest of the session. Kevin and Dave still spent much of the time going over the Nimzo-Indian as Tara showed several others her favorite variations of the Sicilian. Having a clearly new found respect for her abilities, they all soon forgot about who she was and just played for the enjoyment of the game, all except Dave.

Off by themselves, Kevin and Dave looked over their moves closely, but Dave would still keep looking over at Tara, then back at Kevin, obviously not rid of his disbelief. He said nothing about it until it was when it was time to go home and everyone began packing up their boards and chess men. He finally spoke up about what was really on his mind.

"Wow! I would have never believed it!", he gushed as quietly as he could, "How'd you find out about her?"

Kevin smiled, "On the school's chat room. She came online and we started playing there. At one point we decided to play in person and we've been playing ever since."

"Nobody's gonna believe this!"

"Oh, it's no big, Dave."

"No big? Are you crazy? When the school finds outs a cheerleader, especially the best looking one on the whole squad, plays chess with us, they'll go nuts!"

Kevin snorted in amusement, "Well, no argument there, Dave. She is the best looking one. But there won't be any big problem. People will talk a lot, but after awhile it'll die down."

"Well, maybe. But doesn't she have a boyfriend? Like some jock on the basketball team? He would freak out if he knew."

"Oh, she's not dating him anymore. They broke up at the beginning of the summer."

"Gee, a girl that hot? She's gotta be seeing somebody new."

"You mean you haven't heard? I think it's all over school by now."

"No, man! Is she? Who is it? I'll bet he's on the football team!"

"Well, no."

"Are you kidding? Which jock is locking lips with her then?"

"it's not a jock, Dave."

"It's not?", Dave replied, confused, "But she is seeing someone."

Kevin smiled again as he finished packing his gear, "Yeah, she is."

"Really? Who?"

"Me."

Kevin left Dave sitting there, shell shocked, staring at Kevin like a loon as Kevin smiled innocently at him, calmly shouldered his back pack and followed Tara out of the room. They walked down the hall way about fifty feet, which was as far as he could go and hold off from laughing uproariously. Tara stared at him as he doubled over in pure pleasure, his laughter resounding off the walls of the hallway.

"Oh! That felt _so_ good!"

Tara looked askance at him as they kept walking and said, grinning, "Okaaayyy! Now that didn't go half bad, Guberman. I think they started to warm up to me there at the end."

"I had no doubt, girl!", he replied with as big a smile, still barely containing himself, "I _knew_ as soon as they saw you play, it wouldn't be a problem! After today, you _could_ go in there with your three eyes, four legs, and six arms, and it wouldn't make a bit of difference!"

She laughed, "Yeah, you were right. They are kind of geekish, but in a nice way."

He managed to control himself, wiping his eyes clear of tears from laughing so hard.

"Yeah! They're my friends. And they really are good people, just different."

"Yeah, I can see that."

She frowned slightly in resignation, "But you know Bonnie will never let me live this down."

"So what?" he replied, "Like you really care, now?"

Looking serious, she said, "She used to be my best friend, Kev."

"I know, I know.", he said contritely, "I'm really sorry she feels that way. But I'm sure you'll handle it just fine, if it comes up."

"Yeah.", she said, starting to cheer up.

Feeling better, she chuckled and said, "Okay, enough about her. I'll think about crossing that bridge later when I get to it. There's still the hard part about this whole chess club thing. I have to make the competition team, and you say there are only four positions, right?"

"Normally, yes. But for the Tri-City, the team expands to six."

"Cool. So how do I get on the team?"

"There's a formal round robin every month throughout the year. The results are tabulated through the months and the tally determines everyone's position on the team."

"Badical! Then I think I had a good start. I just have to work my way up."

Kevin laughed smugly and reached over to hold her hand as they walked down the steps out of the school building.

"Tara.", he said, "Believe me, This is _sooo_ not a problem."

"Oh? And how do you know that?"

"Sergei _is_ second board, and you just proved that he's about to get put back to third."

* * *

They spent the rest of the day together after that, going to the movies and returning back to her house. When they got there, they sat outside on the porch in the outdoor love seat, enjoying the fall weather. The leaves were still turning, providing a beautiful panorama of color to see.

She said, "Hey, it's early yet. How about a quick game?"

"Sure. Sounds good."

"Okay, I'll go up and get the board."

"Wait a minute. Let's try it without the board."

She looked at him strangely, "Without the board? What are you talking about?"

"This is an exercise I learned about that helps you remember opening positions. You play the game, calling out the moves, keeping the positions of the men in your head."

"What? That's not possible, is it?"

"Sure it is. Grandmasters often put on exhibitions like that, playing blindfolded."

"But how? How can you remember where all the men are?"

"By knowing your openings. If you know the standard positions by heart, all you have to remember is where the play deviates, and how you win from there. That way you don't have to remember where each individual piece is, just where it changes from the norm. And as you know, any change from the norm usually spells defeat for whoever dares it. By the time you get out into middle game, enough exchanges have been made to simplify things and you can remember where the pieces are."

"But Kevin, I don't think I can."

"Tara, don't do that.", he said firmly, "If you aren't going to let me feel that I'm such a geek, I'm am not going to let you think you're the ditzy blond. You aren't. You can do this."

She looked at him warily a moment before responding, "Ouch! Guess I deserved that."

"Straight up, girl. Now, are you ready?"

"Okay. I guess. Who's white?"

"I am. Pawn to queen four."

Her face changed slightly, starting to regard him like a cat analyzing its target.

"What happened to pawn to king four?"

"You always play the Sicilian."

"So? What's wrong with that?"

"Nothing. I just want you to expand on more than just the Sicilian. You have to learn queen side openings as well, you know."

"Okay. Pawn to queen four.", she responded with a sigh.

"Good. Pawn to queen bishop four."

Almost cutting him off, she immediately said, "Pawn takes pawn."

He raised his eyebrows as she smiled like that cat had just nabbed its prey.

When he didn't respond right away, she added, "What? You think I don't already know queen pawn openings?"

"Then you know the smart play is to decline the gambit."

"True, but sometimes you just gotta go for it."

"Queen's Gambit Accepted. Bold move, Monroe.", he said, looking admiringly at her.

Suddenly boring into him with her cat's eyes, she reached up and pulled him close.

"Well, you know, I've always liked... ...aggressive openings.", she purred as she brought her lips in range of his.

He kissed her lightly then replied, "Pawn to king three."

"Knight to queen bishop three."

"Bishop takes pawn."

She kissed him again, this time more softly and longer, and repetitively.

"This isn't helping me... ...remember the game board.", he mumbled between kisses.

"That's the idea, dude.", she whispered softly as she pulled him down onto the love seat.


	6. Chapter 5

**Chapter Five**

**Engaging the Open Queen File**

"What do think, Kevin?"

"Ugh. Knight to rook threeish."

"Really?"

"Yeah, for sure."

"I would have thought, oh, pawn to knight four."

"King or queen?"

"Definitely king."

"Really? I don't know, Tara."

Jess and Steve looked over their shoulders with the strangest expressions on their faces, staring at their double date mates sitting behind them in the movie theater.

Oblivious, Kevin and Tara kept gazing at the movie preview highlights, and she piped up soon afterward and said, 'Ooooooh, yes! Pawn to queen four!"

Kevin smiled in return and said, "Yeah. I'll give you that."

The two teens in front looked at each other, hoping the other knew what they were talking about, and quickly seeing neither had a clue.

Steve looked back at Kevin and said, "What are you two doing? Trying to turn into Kim's little brothers or something?"

The objects of his question looked at each in amusement and started to giggle.

Kevin replied, "We're just talking about the movie previews, Farley."

"Yeah, like some hypnotized chess addicts or something.", added Jess.

They laughed again.

"It's no big, Jess!", said Tara, "Kevin taught me how to play blindfold chess, where we play in our heads without a board in front of us."

"Huh?", she said, "You can do that?"

"I didn't think so at first, but yeah, you can!", Tara replied.

"So were you playing a game just then?", asked Steve.

"Not actually.", answered Kevin, "Tara started it. Sometimes we rate things by chess moves. The more important the move is to controlling the center, the better the rating. So like pawn to queen four is the best, and pawn to rook three would be the worst."

"So how do you think you would rate the movie?"

"Without having seen it yet?" said Tara, looking at Kevin again.

"Oh, what? Bishop to..."

"Bishop four, yeah.", Kevin finished for her.

"Uh, king side?"

"Queen, definitely queen."

"Yeah, yeah, I'll go with that."

They turned and looked at Steve and Jess very innocently as if it didn't need any further explanation to understand such a self-obvious thing.

Jess had this weird look on her face as she slowly shook her head and said with a smile, "You are _sooo_ the chess nerd now, Tara."

Tara batted her eyes at her friend.

"Why thank you, Jess!", she said in mock appreciation, "That's the nicest thing you've ever said to me!"

Jess and Steve turned back towards the screen, chuckling.

He shook his head, muttering, "Another perfectly good blond cheerleader corrupted. Such a tragedy."

Jess looked at him teasingly, "Careful there, BF. You treading on dangerous ground."

"Oh, not you, Jess.", he replied offhandedly with a smirk, "You're definitely a, uh, castle to castle sixteen or whatever."

Jess looked back at Kevin for interpretation.

Kevin turned to Tara, "What do you think?"

"Oh, definitely pawn to queen four territory."

"Got that right.", he smiled back.

They looked back at Jess and nodded their approval.

"Okay.", Jess said to Steve, "You get to live one more night."

"Gee, thanks."

* * *

After the movie, the four of them went for pizza at Oscar's. After downing most of the pie and some sodas they had a spirited discussion of the movie, then went on to the general gossip at school. Soon, talk also turned to other subjects, the last of which was the cheerleading co-captain.

"Hey, Tara, did you hear that Bonnie came up with another killer routine for us?"

"What? Again?", she protested, "What is _with_ her? Didn't we just learn three last month? If we keep this up, we'll never remember all of them!"

"Well, personally I think that she's started thinking a little too much of herself since Kim made her co-captain."

"Duh! _Only_ since then?"

"Got you there, Jess.", replied Steve.

"Maybe so.", his GF replied, "But we might have a better heads up if Tara and she still talked."

"Hey, that's not my fault!"

"Cool down, girl! I'm not blaming you. I know it's Bonnie's problem. But still, you guys don't talk any more. That makes it kind of hard to know when Bonnie springs one of these things on us."

"Yeah, I know.", Tara replied morosely, "But I don't care. And if it gets to be too much of a problem, we'll talk to Kim."

"Uh-huh. By the way, not that I'm pushing for it or anything, but do you think you and she will ever make up?"

Tara frowned, "I don't know, Jess. If she wasn't so hardheaded about the 'Food Chain'."

"Well, I hope you can. I know you miss your friend.", injected Kevin.

Her face softened and she smiled, saying,"Thanks for that, BF."

She leaned over and kissed him.

Jess chuckled and said jokingly, "You're just too good for her, Kevin!"

Tara grinned widely as she held his arm and leaned her head against his shoulder.

Kevin blushed a little, replying, "Naw, it's the other way around."

"Flatterer!", snorted Jess.

"Every chance I get.", Kevin returned, smiling.

Abruptly, Steve's face lost its color and smile as he looked at the entrance to Oscar's.

"Heads up, guys.", he said softly.

They all turned around and saw Jason Morgan in the doorway with Jeremy Wendell, a couple of girls on their arms they didn't know, and from their looks they weren't sure they wanted the opportunity. With spiked hair and more piercings and tattoos than they could count, they sure didn't look like they had to worry about being out late on a school night.

Jason froze when he saw them, while Jeremy's face was taken over by a sour countenance. They stood still that way for a moment, before Jason took a step in their direction. Steve immediately stood up and placed himself in front of the other three, clearly showing Jason he have to go through him. Tara's face had gone white with apprehension, as had Jess'. Kevin stayed on his barstool, glaring at the basketball star.

Jason hesitated, seeing Steve blocking his way, then thought better of it after Jeremy whispered something in his ear. He stepped back with the other three and they drifted off to the other side of the restaurant to find an empty table.

"Come on.", said Steve, "Time to leave."

The others murmured agreement and they all picked up and left the restaurant, leaving payment on the table for the waitress. Steve drove back towards Tara's house. Everyone remained quiet. It had been some time since any of them had run into Jason. Ever since he and Tara broke up, they had heard he had distanced himself with a rowdier crowd. Obviously, the rumors were true. They had also heard of him getting into a power drinking habit, and that he had gotten into some trouble at school because of it. But he was the basketball star and his father owned the largest car dealership in town, so he had enough pull at school to let him get off lightly without any undue hardship. But it was especially hard on Tara, because the rumor mill also blamed her for his change of behavior.

"As if!", snorted Jess, when she finally mentioned it, "Look, girl, he's the loser here. He's got nobody to blame but himself!"

"I know that, Jess. It's just, why me? Why is he so freaked out by our breaking up?"

"God only knows.", she said, exasperated, "Dumb jocks!"

"Hey!", replied Steve.

"Oh, sorry, sweetums! Didn't mean you. I'll make it up to you later."

"You mean when we're alone?"

Jess grinned at him and said huskily, "Especially when we're alone!...", and she scooted over and put her arms around him, giving him a big kiss on the cheek.

"Watch it! I'm driving."

"Yeah, yeah. I know.", she purred, as she settled in close and lay her head on his shoulder.

Kevin chuckled as he watched this and pulled Tara in and held her close as she lay her head on his shoulder too.

"I'm glad he didn't try to come over.", said Tara, still brooding on it.

"Well, he certainly wasn't going to go through Steve to do it, that's for sure!", replied Jess.

"Yeah, that's true."

Steve added, "Come on, guys, Let's forget about that, okay? There are a lot of better things to talk about than Jason Morgan."

"Got that right.", his GF replied.

They remained silent the rest of the way to Tara's house. Steve and Jess were supposed to drop Kevin and Tara off, but as Tara got out she turned to Jess, and said, "Hey Jess, come on up for a minute, will you? I got something to show you. It won't take long."

Jess said, "Okay.", and followed her into the house, leaving the boys outside.

They silently watched them go inside, neither speaking until the light in Tara's room turned on.

"What was that about?", asked Kevin.

"Oh, just girl talk, I'm sure. You know."

"Yeah, I guess so.", he said, moping as he leaned on the truck with his friend.

After a minute or so, he said, "She's right, you know. The only reason Jason didn't come over was because you were there. I'd be nothing but a speed bump to him."

Steve grimaced slightly, trying to reassure him, "That's not your fault, Kevin. You're not the athletic type, never were. I know what you've been going through. I've been there."

"But you're not my size any longer. Not since that growth spurt you put on two years ago."

"Well, I'm not the brain you are. We all have out weaknesses."

"Yeah, but maybe the weaknesses in my case are a little too glaring."

"You're doing better." , he said, then added slyly, "and the weight training's going good. You've made good progress since the summer. I know Tara's really liking the way you're looking now."

"Well, I'm only up to a hundred twenty five on the press."

"But you started at seventy five! That's good!"

Yeah, maybe.", replied Kevin, unconvinced, "But it's not good enough. The other day I went over to help Tara's father and her clear out some brush in the back of their property. He was using the chain saw to cut it up and Tara and I would move it out of the way. What bothers me is that she was so badical at the physical stuff. Do you know that she's still stronger than me?"

"Of course.", Steve said, shrugging, "What did you expect?"

"Geez, Steve!", Kevin blurted out, "It's embarrassing enough I had no stamina! I was exhausted barely half an hour being out there while she just carried on like it was nothing! And then she starts lifting a bunch of heavy branches I couldn't even pick up! It's just makes me look like such a dork!"

Steve smiled sympathetically, "But you got to see, Kev. Not many people realize just how athletic cheerleaders have to be. Like I told you, they have to be strong enough to hold people up like when they do their doghouse pyramids. Remember how I told you about that weightlifting contest between the girl athletes and the cheerleaders and how Tara was the strongest one there except for Kim and the shot put girl?."

"Yeah."

"Remember how I told you I would tell you later how much Tara could press?"

"Why do I get the feeling you're about to let me know?"

"Well, do you want to know?"

Kevin's face screwed up into a grimace as he replied, "Okay. Hit me."

"Her last lift was at two fifteen. That's her best."

"What!", Kevin exclaimed,"There are only a few guys who can do that!"

"What can I tell you?", Steve said apologetically, "Believe me. She's earned it."

His grimace became a mask of pain, Kevin said, "Ooooooh, I just knew that was going to hurt."

"Sorry, man. But you also have to understand she didn't get there overnight. She's worked at it her entire cheerleading career. And on top of that, she also has to have the stamina to be jumping around all night at the games and doing all their gymnastic stuff. Honestly, it's as tough a workout as any football player playing all sixty minutes of a football game. And you've seen how Kim drives them so hard in their workouts, and now that Bonnie's amped it up even more, you know those girls are going to be stout. Outside of the weight training, you don't even do exercise, man, especially aerobics. You can't expect to keep up with somebody who's in that kind of shape, even a girl."

"I know, I know, Steve.", he replied, still aggravated, "It just bothers me."

"Well, then get off your duff and do something about it, man!"

"Like what?"

"Well, what's that video game you seem to like so much, what's the name, oh yeah, _Crossed Swords_?"

"Uh-huh."

"Remember what Mr. Barkin suggested last summer?"

Kevin thought back to that moment.

"Oh, yeah, he suggested taking up fencing."

"Well?"

He considered it. He played _Crossed Swords _because he really liked the whole idea of sword fighting. There was just this mystique to it that really intrigued him, and besides, there was the whole swashbuckling thing too.

He looked musingly at Steve.

"Huh. Maybe."

Steve said, "Look, Mr. Masterson is the fencing coach. He's a friend of my dad, and he teaches all the clubs in all the high schools in the area. I can take you to him next week and introduce you."

Kevin thought about it, slowly nodding, "Cool. Let's do it. I think I'd like to really try it."

"Okay, I'll meet you Monday after school.", he said, looking up towards the house, "Here come the girls."

* * *

Tara turned on the light and entered her bedroom, Jess right behind her.

"Okay girl, what's this about?", she asked.

Tara turned around and said, "Looks like you were right about Jason."

"I got good sources."

"Yeah.", replied Tara, "Jess, this friend of yours that works at Oscar's?"

"Uh-huh?"

"Has she said anything about how often he goes there?"

"Uh, pretty frequently as I remember her saying. He loves to chug the beer these days, you know. Why?"

"You think she might have heard, like, anything about me?"

Jess's forehead wrinkled as she hesitated, "Uh, well."

"What?"

"I didn't want to tell you."

"Come on! Spill!"

"It's just talk, Tara. He was drunk when he said it."

"Jess!", Tara said, exasperated.

"Okay! Okay!", Jess replied contritely, "He said he was going to get even with you for what you did to him."

Tara looked at her goggled-eyed for a full ten seconds before saying, "And you didn't think you should tell me?"

Jess put her hand on Tara's shoulder, "I'm sure he didn't mean it, Tara! It was the booze talking, not him. Jason may be a jerk, but he would never do anything like that when he's sober."

"Maybe, Jess, maybe.", She replied, "But from now on if you hear about him saying something like that, you tell me, okay?"

"Okay.", she said contritely, "I'm sorry Tara. I really didn't want to worry you with a bunch of empty trash talk."

"No, it's okay, Jess.", Tara reassured her, "Really, it is. I think you're right. I don't think he would do anything either. But I do want to know if you hear anything."

"You bet. From now on, girlfriend, every word."

"Good, and one thing more. Not a peep to the BF's, okay?"

Jess nodded wide eyed, "Got that right! Steve would freak!"

"It's not Steve I'm worried about."

"I hear that. Is that what you wanted to 'show me'?"

"Uh-huh. We better go back out before they get suspicious."

Tara headed back out the door, turning off the light as she went. Jess followed her down the stairs, murmuring to herself, "They probably already are."

The girls came out and Steve got back into his truck as Jess climbed into the passenger side.

"See you guys, later!", she said, waving goodbye.

Tara and Kevin waved back and smiled, and then he put his arm around her as they walked slowly back up to her porch.

He looked at her a moment and said, "Everything okay?"

She looked at him innocently, realizing her face was mirroring her thoughts, "Huh? Oh yeah! Everything's fine. Want to come in? It still early. Mom and Dad aren't home yet."

"Sure. Want to play a game?"

"Actually there's this new video I been wanting to try."

He looked at her quizzically, "Since when did you start getting into video games?"

She smirked back, "Since you turned me on to them."

"Really? What have you got?"

"The new _Everlot_."

"Wow! I've been wanting to try that!"

"Well, let's do it!"

They bounded up through the front door and into the den where the television and gaming console was located. She got out the game and plugged it in as Kevin hooked up the controllers and before they knew it, they were knee deep in magical creatures, elves, orcs, and sword fighting.

"How do you like it?", Tara asked, furiously punching control buttons.

"Spanking! Pawn to queen four!"

She laughed in response, furious clicking noises filling the room as the screen activity suddenly revved up without warning.

"Yeah, pawn to queen four.", she replied excitedly, in agreement.

Explosions, magic fireballs, and dragons filled the screen and their imaginations.

"Pawn to queen bishop four.", he went on, challenging her.

Laughing with abandonment, Tara's quick thumbing cut through the spells and arcania, her armored amazon crashing through to her target.

The girl smiled at him devilishly, 'Pawn takes pawn!"

"_Doh!_ You got me!", moaned Kevin as his avatar died an ignominious death on screen. Tara yelped with delighted laughter as his body slowly slid to the floor in liquid defeat and she jumped up and danced a victory jig around the couch, wielding her game controller like the sword of vengeance borne by her character, singing a victory tune.

Kevin lay in a muddled heap staring up in bemused shock as she plopped down on top of him, making him go "ooph!" in surprise. She straddled his body, got right in his face, and lorded it over him, swaying from side to side.

"Who -oo's the girl? Who-oo's the girl?", she sang mockingly.

Kevin sighed, grudging in his reply, "Okaaaay! You're the girl!"

"And you better not forget it!", she shot back laughing as she stood and gave him a helping hand up.

Straightening his Dartmouth sweat shirt, he frowned at her, "Gee, who knew you'd be such a natural at RPG video games?"

She looked at him with a droll expression and a sly smile, "Hey, all that magic stuff has its limits. There's no better spell than three feet of steel!"

With slit eyes, he replied, "Oh, yeah? I'll show you three feet of steel."

Her face filled with feigned horror as she shrieked and ran out of the room and up the stairs to her bedroom, Kevin close on her heels.

"Kevin Guberman, don't you dare! Oww!"

There was the sound of thuds on the carpet by the bay window as their bodies collided and rolled across the room. Giggling, she ended up on her back, Kevin halfway laying on top and laughing with her. She smiled up at him from the floor as he drank in the mirth of her eyes and the way her hair spread out over the area rug like long rays of sunlight. They had ended up next to the chessboard table, and the black pieces of her grandfather's set were sitting in position on the near side silently watching them without comment.

Knowingly, he grinned and said, "Pawn to king three.", the next move in the Queen's Gambit Accepted game she had started.

Her face relaxed with a soulful gaze. Slowly she reached up to the chessboard and gently knocked the Black King over on its side, then looked back at him. Kevin's own smile widened as he descended tenderly onto her lips.

* * *

The next week, Kevin met Steve and they went and found Mr Masterson. Pleased to hear Kevin's interest in the sport, he sat down and explained what would be involved. The more he heard about it, the more Kevin felt he would like it.

He signed up that day. Mr. Masterson had him execute a couple of basic moves, then nodded, saying that he had enough coordination for it. Thereafter each day after school, except Tuesdays for chess club, he started doing basic training with other beginners, training under one of the advanced students with Mr. Masterson coming once a week to bring them more up to speed.

The first classes had them practicing the simple footwork moves like forward crossover, backward crossover, advance and retreat, and lunge. The advanced student kept reminding them to keep their center of gravity level, not moving up and down, instead moving fluidly back and forth with their footwork. Shortly after that, they were introduced to the practice weapons, learning how to hold them and then use them in conjunction with their footwork. They were started with foil.

What Kevin found interesting was the tactics. Learning to read a hand cue or a footwork signal to determine what the opponent was doing intrigued him. Mr Masterson told the class he was a student of the Hungarian Methodology, which he said tied all the aspects of fencing together. He would go into long discussions of hand tempo, foot tempo, dealing with the marching attack, and other analyses of strategy that raptly held Kevin's attention. At first he had been getting a little bored with the foot drills, but when he started thinking about the tactics of a philosophical bout and applying them to the exercise, that made it come alive for him, and his progress began to quicken in speed. After foil, he was introduced to the epee and then sabre.

That was when he knew what he liked. Somehow he could sense it when he held the cutting blade in his hand. It just felt right. He would train in all three formats, but the sabre was definitely going to be his favorite.

And the best thing about fencing was that it was an exercise that worked every muscle in the body, a complete workout. It would be all he needed to shape up, and at least not look like a total wimp compared to Tara. Of course, he knew she wouldn't have minded if he didn't do anything physical. That wasn't why she liked him. But as she looked at him over those first few months after he started the training, her eyes did start to look even more pleasantly hungry at his physical form when it started to define itself better, becoming wiry. She started thinking, 'Now if I could just get him to grow his hair out a little longer...".

On a Saturday night in January, Tara and Kevin arrived back at her house around eleven, having seen a new chick flick that just came out, about a poor homeless girl who succeeded in graduating from college. Kevin didn't mind seeing these kinds of films, and actually tended to enjoy them just as much as Tara did, but this one got him thinking after they left the theater. They'd had a great Christmas and Channukah with their families and had given each other gifts they both cherished. With his new interest in fencing, she had bought him a new set of padding with a face guard, as well as the practice saber he really had being eyeing on the internet. He bought her a beautiful pendant necklace with matching earrings set made of marcasite silver and inset sapphires. He was really pleased that he had gotten her the right present. The silver and blue matched so beautifully with her eyes and hair. When he saw it in the jewelry store, he knew it was the perfect Christmas gift. He was a little anxious about giving that to her, wondering if maybe it was too big a gift to give her at this point in the relationship. But when she opened the box, she gasped and smiled hugely, kissing him long and breathlessly. She had no reservations about it at all, and the fact she accepted such a rich gift made him feel so good as it told him just how deep her affection for him really was.

He was thinking about this as they went back to her house that January night and walked up the steps to the front door. They hadn't spoken much on the way home and Kevin finally decided to say what was on his mind.

"Tara, what are your plans after graduation?"

She looked at him, biting her lower lip.

She said, "Let's sit down, okay?"

They sat down in the love seat on the porch, and she took his hand in hers.

"I haven't really thought that much about it. I have been looking at nursing school for the last couple of years."

"Nursing school? Really? I didn't realize you were interested in a medical field."

Tara wondered why she hadn't said anything before, then realized it was because she really had no firm plans for college. She wasn't even sure about going to college, much less finishing. She envied Kevin for knowing exactly what he wanted to do ever since he was twelve.

"I'm not sure.", she started, "I do like the idea of helping the sick, especially kids."

"That's cool. But what's holding you up on deciding?"

"I don't know. I'm applying to Middleton College for the first couple of years, then I'll figure it out from there. I can go for an LVN or RN degree from there, if that's what I still want to do."

"You don't sound sure."

She grimaced a bit, "Well, yeah. I just don't know. Nothing has really, really appealed to me."

"But why only two years of college?"

"That's all I need for nursing school."

"But Tara, you could go so much farther."

She blinked at him in surprise.

"Like what? I mean there's not all that much out there for me."

He looked at her like she was nuts. "I can't believe you said that. Tara! How many times do I have to tell you? You can do anything you want!"

Tucking his legs underneath, he turned and faced her.

"Tara, I'm serious. You are so intelligent it almost scares me sometimes."

She frowned in disbelief, snorting, "Come on, Kevin! Chess is one thing, but..."

He interrupted, "No, that's not it. It's more than chess. We've studied together and I've seen you do it. You take good notes, but when you go over them, it's like you don't even need them. It all comes back to you. And the chess shows that too. You have a great head for memory when it's needed. In algebra, you've always shown an excellent grasp of the concepts. And your abstract thinking is dead on, too. I've seen you really understand a lot of the aesthetics in English and history class..."

"No I don't, Kevin!", she objected.

"Yes, you do! It only shows whenever you get enough nerve to raise your hand and say something!"

She looked askance at him, but said nothing.

Kevin pressed his case, "I'm not playing you here, Tara. You're always calling me a brainiac, so take it from a brainiac. I've seen you in action, and you have what it takes to go anywhere in the educational world you want to go."

She continued to stare at him, disbelieving.

Kevin kept going, "Don't hold back. Look at everything there is to be offered no matter what. Don't worry how long it will take you. Graduate school, Doctoral school. It doesn't matter. Don't let that scare you away. In the end, if it's what you really want to do, you're going to enjoy it, no matter how much time you have to put into it. I know about that from my parents."

"Graduate school?", she asked.

She was having problems just thinking about graduating college. It just didn't seem like it was going to happen, or needed to, and now he was talking graduate school?

"Yeah! Graduate school!", he said excitedly, "What would you like? Engineering? The arts? Dance? Technology? Biological Sciences?..."

She looked at him a little more uncomfortably now.

"I don't know, Kevin. I'll have to think about it."

"And you know you don't have to go to Middleton College. I mean, it's okay, but you could go to some other university."

She looked at him slyly, realizing where he was going with all this, "You mean Dartmouth."

"Well,", he said a little sheepishly, "The thought did cross my mind."

"So that's why you're telling me all this." she said smiling, "Thinking pretty far ahead there, aren't you, Guberman?"

He grinned, "Hey, I'll admit there's some enlightened self interest involved here. But I'm really serious about what I'm saying here. And since I figured I'm the guy that best deserves to be with you."

She laughed with him, "Okay, Kevin. I'll think about it."

"Really?"

"Really."

"Really, Really?"

She cuffed him on the shoulder still laughing, "Yes! Really, really! Now cut it out!"

"Okay, you do that."

She looked at him tenderly with very soft eyes, and leaned in and kissed him gently for a good long while.

When they finished, she said, "It's getting late, Kevin. I'll see you tomorrow, okay?"

"Everything's okay?", he asked.

She smiled and said, "Yeah. You've just given me a lot to think about, that's all. It's all good, and I will think about it, okay?"

"Yeah, okay.", he whispered, and he kissed her again before she went into the house.

He sat there, deep in thought before he slowly got up and walked down the steps to go back home. The future had suddenly become so much more important to him now, although he knew it had really started at the beginning of the school year when he realized he was worthy of her.

That was because he couldn't admit to himself what he knew to be true until he did feel worthy of her. When he didn't, he was just this kid who was amazed that he was dating this incredibly beautiful, wonderful girl he had been crushing on ever since he had found out about girls. Now that she had shown him how much he meant to her and made him realize his own worth, he knew how much he loved this woman with whom he wanted to spend the rest of his life.


	7. Chapter 6

**Author's Note: The preparations for the game start to get into high gear...not so much action, but still important.**

**Chapter Six**

**The Queens move into play**

"Forward cross. Recover. Back cross. Recover. Forward cross. Recover."

Hands on his hips, Kevin smoothly transitioned through the basic exercise with the rest of the fencing class. The beginners always started with about twenty minutes of going through these warm up movements before going on to actual foil practice, and he calmly went through them almost mindlessly, having committed the movements to memory, instinctively performing them so that he didn't even have to think about them. Five months had passed since he had started fencing training and Mr. Masterson had already commented on how quickly he had come along. He even suggested Kevin should consider some tournament play, noting he was now the third best student of the beginners group. As a beginner, he was still working on his foil and epee skills, but during the previous month he finally got a crack at trying sabre, and since then he devoted every extra moment of his fencing practice time outside of his mandatory exercise to it. He was already thinking forward to that as the student instructor called a halt to the basic exercise and asked everyone to get their gear ready for epee practice.

As Kevin put his vest on, he heard a noise coming from the door and saw Tara sticking her head in and looking around. She smiled as soon as she saw him and waved for him to come on over. He put his weapon down and slipped out the door into the hallway, blending into her arms as soon as the door closed behind him and kissing her longingly.

A very long moment afterwards, they came up for air and she said, "Wow! I've missed that."

Grinning, he replied, "Hey, it's only been since last night."

She looked steadily into his eyes, "That's still too long.", and then pressed her lips back into his again.

When she finally pulled back again, he smiled and said, Mmmmmm. I cannot get enough of that. Any special reason for this spontaneous, yet oh so wonderful visit?"

"Besides your badical kisses?", she said, chuckling, "Well, yeah. I'm about to go see Mr. Svetlanoff about my college admissions work."

"Uh-huh.", he said with a searching look on his face, "So have you thought any further about what I've been saying?"

She knew what he meant. It had been a couple of months since Kevin first encouraged her to think about doing something more than doing just two years at Middleton College and nursing school. But he kept asking her again and again after that, and she kept replying she hadn't ruled anything out yet, nor made up her mind, and she still hadn't.

"Yes I have thought about it!", she said exasperatingly for the umpteenth time, "And I _am_ going to look into other schools, as well as some other possible career choices."

Still grinning, Kevin asked, "Like what?"

"Well, I though about being a veterinarian."

"Hey, that's cool!"

"Maybe a physician assistant."

"Sounds good too. But when are you going to decide?"

"Kevin!", she said wide-eyed, "I can't make up my mind that quickly! Give me some time!"

He pulled back and sighed in resignation, an apologetic look on his face.

"I'm sorry, Tara. Really, I not pushing you out of impatience. But we're already seniors. I already have my application in to Dartmouth. I'm expecting acceptance at any day now."

"I know, Kevin, I know.", she replied anxiously, "I already have my applications in, too."

"Where?"

"You _know_ where.", she reprimanded him.

That was true. He knew perfectly well since he helped her fill out most of them. He wanted her to fill one out to apply for Dartmouth too, but she held off on that. She had to think about it first because of how expensive it was. There were also some other schools she applied to on her own which he didn't specifically know about, but the problem was always going to be getting the funds to pay for her education. Her parents didn't make as much as Kevin's parents, and though they didn't want to restrict where she went to college, they favored Middleton College because it was good enough for them and it would be a lot cheaper. Still, she wondered about whether she should apply at all.

"You still haven't applied to Dartmouth, then?", he said, disappointed.

"I'm looking into it, Kevin.", she said to mollify him, "But before I do that, I really need to get some more information on their scholarship programs. I've already applied to a couple of them, but I'm not sure I qualify. There are more I need to look into. I need to know I can get all this paid for."

She shook her head, clearing her mind, "Anyway, that's not why I came here. I wanted to know if there was something more for Dartmouth that you might want me to get for you when I see Mr. Svetlanoff."

"No, not really.", he replied, thinking about it, "Wait a minute. Oh yeah. Ask about their dorms. I keep forgetting to do that for some reason. I should have done that long ago."

"I thought your parents are going to rent you an apartment up there."

"Yeah, but just in case that doesn't work out, I just need to know what they have to offer."

"Okay, I'll ask. I gotta run. See you after cheer practice?"

"It's a date, my queen.", he said with a smile.

She pulled him back in and kissed him one more time then let go.

"Always there for me, my knight.", she said with a laugh, "Okay, see you then."

"You bet.", he said and watched her walk away.

He shook his head and sighed, saying to himself "God, I miss her as soon as she leaves."

He went back into the gym to resume his epee practice, and it was even better today.

* * *

"Come in.", Mr. Barkin said to the timid knock on the door.

The door opened and a very pretty blond girl stuck her head through and looked inside. Steve Barkin looked up from grading papers and saw who it was.

"Ah, Monroe. Come in. Have a seat."

Tara looked at him apprehensively as she slipped past the door and closed it. As she sat down she noticed a little desk nameplate with 'Mr. Svetlanoff' on it. Below it were the words, "_The truth will set you free_."

"I thought this was the guidance counselor's office.", she said tentatively, "I had an appointment."

"Affirmative.", the school counselor replied matter-of-factly, "But Mr. Svetlanoff had to go down to INS to straighten out some problems with his green card. Something about missing information on his application which he had to correct to keep his job."

Then he lowered his voice after looking around to make sure no one was listening.

Leaning in, he said, "I hear he may be deported, so I'm filling in for the meantime."

"Oh, I see."

Speaking normally again, he said, "You're right on time. Good. I like punctuality in my students. Now what can I do for you?"

"Uh, college applications?"

"Ah yes. Well, let me review your file.", he said, picking up a manila folder in front of him and perusing it.

Tara sat nervously in the plastic chair in front of Mr. Barkin's desk, carefully balancing her books on her lap. After awhile he looked up from the folder and addressed her...

"So, what interests you? Judging from your activities. Yes, you're on the cheer squad, of course. Perhaps you would be interested in the fashion industry. Naturally, you could do very well modeling, although I admit you could use two or three more inches in height for that. Maybe you would care for the culinary arts, or is there a clerical field you might have a yen for."

"Well, actually I was thinking medicine."

"Ah, the healing arts. Excellent choice. The world certainly needs more nurses. But there are a myriad of fields to choose from. You could be a pharmacist, respiratory therapist, occupational therapist, physical therapist, or a physician assistant. And of course there is that much maligned but oh so important field of medical assistant."

"I was thinking about being a physician..."

"Good.", he interrupted, "Inspired choice, Monroe. A physician's assistant is becoming more and more of an essential need in today's world of medicine. Lifestyle's good. So's the money. You can't go wrong there."

"Er, no, Mr Barkin. I meant physician, as in doctor?"

Steve Barkin blinked his eyes a couple of times before answering.

"Let me get this clear. You want to become a doctor?"

"Oh, no, Mr. Barkin! I wanted to ask for my boyfriend. You see, I was thinking about being a physician in terms of how it related to..."

"Your boyfriend?", Barkin interrupted.

"Uh. Yes. Kevin Guberman."

"Ahh, that's right. Kevin Guberman is your 'beau', isn't he?", he replied, looking rather askance at her, "Well, I always wonder about those brainy types. But he's okay in my book. Did a nice job helping to coach the tee-ball league over the summer. If you ask me though, you should get him into some athletics. It'll do him some good."

"Oh, he has, Mr. Barkin. He's taken up your suggestion and started fencing."

"Has he? Good for him! Showing some common sense after all. Now what were you asking about?"

"Well, he plans on going to medical school and I just wanted to get some information for him."

"Hmmm.", the teacher mused, having picked up another folder and looking through it, this one with Kevin's name, "It looks like he's already completed the process. What other information does he need?"

"Mainly, he needs to get information on applying for a dorm room at Dartmouth, where he's going for undergrad."

"Well, I can do that, but you said that you wanted information on medical school."

Tara bit her lip a little bit, "Uh, Mr. Barkin. Can you keep a secret?"

He stared at her, "Monroe, you know what goes on in this room, stays in this room. I do not breach student confidentiality."

"That's great, sir. But actually, I was the one who wanted to know about medical school."

He frowned at her a moment, then his eyes revealed his understanding, "Oh, I see. You want to see what to expect he's going to have to go through so that you know what you'll be going through. So, things are that serious between you two?"

Tara reddened at that, "Well, we've haven't gotten to that point, sir. I mean, I really like Kevin and all, but. I just wanted to know, you know, just in case"

He nodded with complete comprehension and a knowing smile, "I fully understand, Monroe. Smart move. I admire your planning ahead. Well then, let me start. First, I commend him for his very lofty aspirations. They say that the physician's art is the most noble of the professions. Of course, my personal experience had been somewhat checkered on that point..."

"Uh, yes sir."

Realizing he has strayed, he continued, "Yes, back on subject. Your boyfriend, Mr. Guberman would need four solid years and a degree from a reputable university, which obviously Dartmouth will more than qualify as being, with a high grade point average, an absolute minimum being a three point five out of four, but preferably even higher than that."

"Well, I don't think that's a problem. He has a four point GPA now."

"And he'll need to take the MCAT."

"The what?"

"Medical College Admission Test. Most medical schools still require it, although I don't believe Johns Hopkins does any more. It seems the medical schools are shying away from that these days."

"I'll remember to tell him."

"Good. Of course, it matters as to which college he graduates from. Now don't mistake me, Middleton College is a fine venue for higher learning, but sometimes a more prestigious university can help him in getting accepted to the medical school of his choice."

"Well, he does plan on going to Johns Hopkins."

"I see. Then he definitely should go to someplace like Dartmouth."

"Yes, sir. And then what?"

"Well as I understand it, medical school is four years, following which you have to have postgraduate work for specialty training which could be anywhere from three to eight years."

Tara blinked, "That long?"

"Well you wouldn't want them ripping your kidneys out until they were fully trained for it, wouldn't you say?"

"Uh, yeah.", she replied, going a little green around the edges, "So is that it?"

"Yes, that's about it. More than enough if you ask me."

"Uh, how do they pay for it?"

"For medical school? Well, if your parents can't pay the tuition, you're looking at getting loans or scholarships. And that's pretty much it because medical school is too intense a field of study to have a side job."

She looked at him, a little surprised. She hadn't expected that.

"Is that right? You can't have a job and go to medical school?"

"That's the way it is with most medical schools. They don't allow it. Now if you were married, your, ummm, spouse could support you, if that was something he or she was willing to do.", and he looked at her knowingly with sly eyes, "If you get my drift."

She glanced back at him warily, getting a little red around the gills again, "Well, like I said, that's getting a little ahead of ourselves. So, what does it cost to go to medical school?"

"Hmmm. From what I understand, it can run anywhere from a hundred to two hundred for the entire four years."

Tara's eyes went bug-eyed as she replied breathlessly "_thousand_!"

"Affirmative, Monroe. Definitely not a career choice for the faint hearted, I assure you. Of course, I don't see that as being much of a problem for Mr. Guberman with his parents, but somebody who doesn't have that kind of support will end up with an education loan that could top a quarter million in some cases by the time they finish."

She froze, shell shocked for a few moments before she could respond.

"Um, I really appreciate all that, Mr. Barkin. Well, I guess that answers my question. Could you just get me some info and an application for the Dartmouth dorms, then?"

"Affirmative, Monroe. But what about you?"

"Huh?"

"Your plans?"

"Plans? For Kevin and me?", she asked, blushing.

"Your plans?", he replied in an annoyed tone, "For college? That _is_ why you're here, aren't you?"

"Oh! Right! Well, I'd been thinking of going into nursing the last couple of years."

He picked up her folder again and started rifling through the papers.

"Hmmm. Yes, it says here you were looking at Middleton College and then the nursing schools. You would have to take one or two years at Middleton for the pre-requisites before entering nursing school, depending on whether you wanted to go the LVN or RN route."

"Yes, sir."

"Well, you certainly have the grades to get you into Middleton College. If you maintain that through your college years, you should be able to make it just fine into nursing school. So, Monroe, exactly by what assistance can I be of service to you?"

"Well, I was thinking of attending another college instead of Middleton."

"I see. It's rather late in the process, unless you plan on starting in the spring. I suppose we could also get you some applications to other universities and colleges. Did you have some in mind?"

"Actually I've already applied, sir."

She reached down into her papers and pulled out a sheet, then handed it to him.

He perused it for a minute.

"Yes, University of Colorado at Boulder, Nebraska, Iowa. Oh yes, Texas A&M, now there's a school with a fine military tradition. Yes, these are all good choices."

"I'd really like to look more into their scholarship programs."

"I see. And you have some ivy league schools here, too, including Dartmouth, I see."

Tara smiled, still a little red faced, "Well, I just want to look at all my options, you know."

Mr. Barkin smiled back at her, "I understand. It's no problem. I can see why you have an interest in the scholarship programs. Some of these schools certainly think highly of their tuition rates, don't they?"

"Yes, sir.", she replied in a serious tone, "My parents don't make quite that much, and I need all the help I can get in that department."

He chuckled and said, "Okay, Monroe. Let me get the right papers and applications together for you and Kevin. Come back next week and I'm sure Mr. Svetlanoff can help you get them filled out."

Tara relaxed, saying, "Thanks, Mr. Barkin."

The phone rang and Barkin immediately answered it.

"Barkin, here... ...yes... ...he did... ...he didn't... ...okay, I copy, loud and clear."

He hung up and turned back to her.

"I guess I'll be the one helping you with the forms next week."

"Deported, huh?"

Steve Barkin picked up the name plate and looked at it.

"Ten four. Apparently he forgot to take his own advice."

"What was that?"

"He shouldn't have used an alias when they have an interpol record and fingerprints."

* * *

"Who's the best?"

"We are! We are!"

"How do you spell it?"

"M - I - D - D - L - E - T - O - N! Middleton! Middleton! We're number one!"

"Hit it!"

And just at that moment, the girls formed the pyramid as Bonnie did the handspring and landed on top with a flourish. This was about the twentieth time they went through it and the team was starting to show their frustration, with the exception of the co-captain on the top of the pyramid who was running it. After the yelling and cheering finished the routine, Bonnie jumped down as the rest of the girls disassembled.

"Okay, girls. That's adequate.", she said, "We need to get it better, but we're out of time today."

Kim frowned at her, "Better? Bonnie, they hit the routine dead on."

A miffed expression on her face, "We can always improve, 'K', especially when it's one of _my_ routines. Besides, Tara needs to hold her end of the pyramid up better. She's slipping."

"I am not!", retorted Tara hotly, "I'm holding my end up just fine! You try and hold the base of the pyramid, and we'll see how much you shake!"

"Not my job, 'T'. Yours is to support. Mine is to shine. If you can't do the job..."

"Do the job? Listen here, you!"

"Stop it!", said Kim, getting between the two of them and facing Bonnie, "Bonnie, you're getting it wrong. Tara's doing just fine."

"But you're not on top where you can feel it shaking, Kim."

"That might only be the extra weight being put on the top, 'B'!"

Wide eyed, Bonnie gasped, "I knew it! You really did harsh about that on that mountain in Austria!"

Irritated, Kim retorted, "Not that time! But now I wish I had!"

"Well, it doesn't matter! It's still my routine and I'm still the one on the top of the pyramid!"

"Only because I let you, Bonnie! Don't make me change my mind!"

Bonnie looked at her with a disgusted frown then turned away with a snort, "Whatever! I should have realized it's all I can expect from you two. You can't even get decent BF's!"

"Bonnie!", Kim and Tara yelled at her, but the girl had already started walking away and didn't respond. The other girls grumbled as they walked away as well, depressed that practice had ended with another sniping session between Bonnie and Tara, and finally glad it was over. They left the gym quickly, leaving Kim and Tara standing there with smoldering eyes.

Tara growled angrily in disgust, wringing her hands "Ohh! I swear, one of these days!"

"Uh-huh.", replied Kim, "Now you know how I've felt for the last four years."

Tara looked at her thoughtfully, "Yeah, you're right. Sorry, Kim. I should have seen through her sooner."

Kim smiled sourly back at her, "No big. You see her for what she is now."

"If only she wasn't so hyped up on the 'food chain'!"

"That isn't going to change, girl. I can tell you that."

"Yeah.", muttered Tara, "Got that right."

Kim sighed, "Well, nothing more we can do about it now."

"Hmmm.", Tara replied, finally turning around and picking up her gear, "We might as well go get changed."

Kim turned to her and smiled, saying, "Off to meet your BF?"

Tara grinned saucily, "You bet! I think we're headed for some fast Mexican food then a little time under the stars."

"Bueno Nacho?"

"Yeah!"

"Hey, great. Ron and I'll be there tonight. Wanna meet up?"

"Sure! What time?"

"Say Sevenish?"

"You got it, Possible. See you then.", She said eagerly as they headed for the showers.

After she bathed and changed, Tara headed for the boy's gym and arrived there just as the fencing class was being dismissed. The students filed out and Kevin soon exited carrying his gear. He came up smiling as soon as he saw her and gave her a quick kiss.

"Have a good practice?"

"Sure did, ", he said, "I even scored a hit on the instructor!"

"Cool! Getting to be quite the swashbuckler there, huh, Guberman?"

He demurely took a stance and executed a fancy bow with a hand flourish. She laughed, but then noticed something new. Kevin actually looked strong. Before he was always kind of a small guy, geeky though cute, with no musculature, not anymore. It was the way he took that bow. She saw some definition coming through his arms and legs. She found it quite... ...pleasing.

"All the more able to defend my queen's honor.", he said in a fake English accent.

She was silent a moment, just looking at him, then she shook her head and chuckled, "You nut! As if I needed that! But I do appreciate the thought."

He stood back up and smiled, "I know, I know. But I can dream."

She laughed and gathered him to her, "Of course you can dream! As long as there's only one subject on your mind, then."

He kissed her again, "You can count on that."

"Good.", she replied, smiling, "I got the dorm information coming from Mr. Barkin by the way. I should have it next week."

"Mr. Barkin? What happened to Mr. Svetlanoff?"

"Deported."

"Huh?"

"Long story. I'll tell you later. By the way, we're meeting Kim and Ron at Bueno Nacho tonight."

"We are? Cool! I was going to ask Steve, but he said something about having to go somewhere."

"Yeah. Jess told me they're going to visit her aunt tonight."

"That's right. I remember now. Okay, I'll go home and change and I'll pick you up at your place. Dad's letting me borrow the car tonight."

"Sounds good."

Later that night, Kevin had showered and changed, picked Tara up and headed out for Bueno Nacho. Once they got there, they looked around and found Kim and Ron at their usual booth. They waved 'hi' and got their food orders, then went and joined them.

"Good to see you, guys!", said Ron, "How's it shaking with the ol' chess club there, Guberman?"

"Oh, pretty good, Ron. Got my girl here up to second board and we're looking to score a three-peat in the Tri-City championship."

"I hear that, my man! Pretty brainy stuffy there for a cheerleader. That's cool!"

She looked at him with a slight frown, "What do you mean pretty brainy stuff for a cheerleader?"

Ron's face paled a little, "Oh! Not that cheerleaders aren't brainy. They can be brainy just like nerds are brainy, like the chess team..."

Kevin looked at him funny.

Ron's eyes got a little wider as he backtracked, "Uh, not that the chess team are nerds! They're just, ummm, brainy! Uh, and cheerleaders don't have to be brainy at all! Not that you aren't brainy, Tara! Uh, don't have to be brainy like, uh..."

At this point even Kim was looking at him funny.

"Uh, like, like Bonnie?"

"You mean Bonnie is Brainy?"

"No! That's not what I mean! I mean, uh, I mean. Oh, you know what I mean!"

The three of them broke down laughing.

Kim slightly nodded, "Sure, uh-huh."

Ron pouted slightly as the others laughed.

Tara added with a smirk, "Good 'save' there, Stoppable."

Kim continued to giggle, "Nice try, BF."

Ron sighed in relief as Rufus stuck his head of the burrito he was devouring and smiled at his human and said, "Yeah! Good One!". Ron wasn't sure if he meant the burrito or the conversation.

Kevin chuckled and said, "It's okay, Ron. We all get foot and mouth disease every now and then."

"Some more than others.", added Kim.

"Kim!"

Kim laughed harder, then turned to Ron and kissed him on the cheek, but was still smirking as she said, "Relax, BF. I know your heart's in the right place."

Ron kept pouting, "Well, okay."

Still chuckling, she said, "Don't worry. I don't hold it against you, mostly."

"It's okay, Ron.", Tara said, "And I thank you for the compliment, even if it wasn't worded quite right."

"But you know what? I think it's great.", Kim said, "It's about time some of these people understood that just because we're cheerleaders doesn't mean we don't have brains in our heads."

"Word, Kim.", said Tara firmly, "I love nothing better than to paste some of those chauvinist types all over the chess board."

"And she's done it, too.", added Kevin.

"Yep.", said Ron, "I know what you mean. It's just like when my lady here takes down some bad guys. They always underestimate her."

"Ron!", exclaimed Kim, "You know some of those villains aren't all that dense."

"I know, Kim. But I don't think they've ever understood your full potential."

She smiled at him, "Well, maybe."

"Trust me, Kim. I'm absolutely sure of this."

Kim rolled her eyes at her BF expounding on yet another subject with an opinion which was decidedly biased. But since it was in her favor, she just grinned.

They ate their meals and shared more gossip about the school, the upcoming cheer practices for the basketball playoffs, and discussed their college plans. Of them all, only Kevin's plans were solidly in place, and discussion went into speculation of what the other three would do. Even there, Kim and Ron were pretty sure they would be trying to go together to Middleton College. She was thinking of criminal justice as a major, and Ron was thinking of some sort of business degree. However, Tara's plans were the least fixed. Kim and Ron made some suggestions which Tara thanked them for and would think about. Eventually Kim got up, excusing herself to go to the ladies room and Tara quickly piped up, wanting to join her.

They left Ron and Kevin munching on chips watching Rufus finish off the cheese sauce.

"I always wanted to ask about your pet.", said Kevin after a few moments, "Is it true you keep him in your pocket?"

"Oh yeah!", replied Ron with smile, "Wouldn't have my little buddy anywhere else."

"Even on the missions?"

"That's right.", said Ron. smiling, "In fact, he's usually a big help."

"Really?"

"That's a fact!", Ron said smugly.

Rufus crossed his paws and looked up at Kevin and chirped, "Yep! Uh-huh! Uh-huh!", then promptly went back to finishing his meal.

"Cool. But, uh, you know, there's something else I always wanted to ask you."

"Shoot, man."

"Well. I mean, does it bother you that it's always Kim who succeeds in the missions? That you're only there to..."

"To distract?"

"Well, yeah. Not meaning anything bad you know."

"No, it's cool, Kevin.", Ron replied thoughtfully, "I know where you're coming from, G-man. Look, I've been helping Kim out now for like six years with her website and the missions, and it's always her badical cheerleading skills and her amazing Kung Fu moves that get the job done. I help as best I can. Sure, she's always the one who usually captures the villains or saves the world, but Rufus and I do help out every now and then, and I'm cool with that."

"So it doesn't bother you that she's stronger, quicker, faster?"

Ron thought about that, realizing that would be the general perception people would have. Both he and Kim knew differently of course, ever since he saved her at Killigan's castle in Scotland three months earlier, but he had no problem now with it. Kim knew what his capabilities were, and he didn't need to prove it to anyone else.

He slowly shook his head, smiling, "Not one bit, Kevin. You see, I understand that Kim was born with some very special gifts. It doesn't matter that she's a girl who does hero work. Those gifts are going to make her what she is, and if it's faster, stronger, quicker than I am, so what? Just because it _is_ that way doesn't make me any less of a guy, especially in her eyes. And to be honest, that's the only place where that matters to me."

Kevin listened closely, his attention solidly engaged.

Ron added, "So, you're having some concerns about that with Tara?"

Kevin's eyebrows lifted slightly, surprised Ron saw that. Maybe it was more obvious than he thought.

"Well, y-yes and no.", he sputtered slightly before recovering, "I mean, it really doesn't matter to me either. And I know I'll probably never quite make it to her level. It's just, well, I am such a wimp. I mean I've seen you on TV when one of Kim's missions gets reported, and you have all of those cool running away skills."

Ron rolled his eyes, replying, "Oh yeah. That's coverage I could do without."

Kevin went on, "But I've seen you in the weight room too, and you're really doing good in there."

"Hey, I've seen you there, too, with Steve. And I've seen you in the fencing class, too. So, what's the prob, man? You got to give it some time, okay? Besides you got more brains than the other three of us here put together."

Kevin guffawed, "So not! You have _not_ seen what Tara can do! She's a heck of a lot smarter than you think when she applies herself, maybe smarter than me!"

"Really?"

"Is the Pope Catholic?"

"Uh, who?"

Kevin looked at him funny, "You don't know who the Pope is?

"Oh! Right! That guy! The one who rides around in that Popemobile. Isn't he, like, the leader of Popeland, or something?"

Kevin smiled and said, "You mean the Vatican?"

Ron replied, a little embarrassed, "Right! Ha-ha! Just slipped my mind there for a moment! Okay, so Tara is a real brain, huh?"

"She's golden in that department, man, just like her looks."

"Well, there you go, dude. She was smart enough to pick you for a BF. So you know what? The two best looking, and smartest, cheerleaders in the school have picked us as their BF's. What are you complaining about?"

They both laughed as Kevin replied, "You know. You are so right!"

"So, don't worry! Be happy!"

"Ooohh, hate that song."

"Me, too. But I like the words."

"Got me there."

* * *

Kim was finishing applying some eyeliner as Tara came out of the stall, washed up, and stood beside her as she looked her own makeup over.

"Kim.", she said as she looked closely at her blush, "Does Ron ever have a problem with you being the one in charge on your missions? Like he doesn't have a problem with the fact you're the one always saving the world and all of that?"

Kim looked up pensively and answered, "You know. There was a time that was true. But recently, that's no longer been a problem."

"Really? What happened?"

"Is this about Kevin?"

"Well, yeah.", she said tentatively, "It's just that, you know, he's not that athletic, and I'm stronger and have more stamina."

"Well, duh!", said Kim supportively, "After all you're one of the strongest cheerleaders on the squad!"

"Yeah.", Tara said with a resigned tone, "I keep telling him it's not a problem, and I don't care about that, but I know he's still a little bothered about the fact that I can do a lot more than he can physically."

"He's going to have to find a way to accept that."

"I know. But, well, I hope he'll come around."

Kim studied her as she looked in the mirror again, applying a little more blush to her cheeks.

"You really like him, don't you?"

Tara looked back at her, and Kim could see the glow in her eyes, "Yeah, Kim. I really do. I _really_ do."

Kim smiled broadly and said, "Listen, I'm going to tell you something. But just keep it under your hat for now. You know how Ron is always goofing around and messing up, being kind of a dweeb?"

"Of course!", Tara replied warmly, "How many years has he been the mascot and proven it? Uh, no offense."

Kim giggled.

"None taken, but you know. About his really being that bad at it?"

Tara's eyebrows knitted together as she studied Kim's expression, "Wait a minute. Are you telling me it's all an act?"

"No, not exactly. Let's just say he's not near the incompetent he seems."

"And his sticking his foot in his mouth?"

"Uh, no.", Kim answered with a grimace, "That, he doesn't fake."

"But he's still a lot more capable than he lets on?"

"That's right."

"In what way?"

"Well, for example, just before Christmas, there was this mission we had where we had to recover all these stolen golf clubs."

"I heard about that on the news."

"Well, halfway through the mission, I was disabled, literally taken out of the fight, and Ron had to take up the slack."

"What do you mean?"

"I ended up getting paralyzed by several neuronal destabilizers and..."

"Paralyzed by what?"

Kim blinked, "Uh, never mind. Just remember I was temporarily paralyzed."

'Okay."

"Well, Ron actually saved me, and he kicked the butts of like fifty goons to do it."

"What!", Tara gasped, gaping at her.

"Your Ron?"

"Uh-huh."

"Ron Stoppable? The guy who can't do anything?"

"Uh-huh."

"I don't believe it!"

"Hey, if I hadn't seen it with my own eyes, I wouldn't have either! But what I mean is I always wanted him to step up to the plate and become more responsible, and he did it, just for me."

"You're serious!"

"Hey, Pixie Girl's promise!", Kim said, her fingers crossed appropriately.

Tara's face change with awe as it sank in.

"So Ron Stoppable is now just as much as a butt kicking, super hot shot kung fu artist as you are?"

"Yeah, that's my guy."

"And he doesn't act it?"

Kim smiled hugely, "Uh-uh. Like I said, he grew up pretty good, despite the stuff he pulls sometimes. But that's just his being a little goofy. It's kind of, you know, part of his charm. The main thing is I know he'll always be there for me. He'll never let me down. And I think I feel as strongly about him as you do for Kevin."

"Yeah.", replied Tara, smiling.

"My point is that Kevin is more mature than Ron."

"Well, in some ways.", she said hesitantly.

"What I'm saying is that he'll come around too.", Kim replied confidently, " Ron couldn't care less now if everyone around him thinks he's a dweeb. He only cares that I don't think it. So what if you're stronger than Kevin physically? He'll understand that it's not anything that puts him down, especially if you accept him. I'm just saying that all you need to do is give him time. He'll be okay."

"Hmmm.", Tara said with a smile, "I think you're right."

They looked at each other, both wondering why they hadn't talked like this a long time ago, and Tara started thinking she would have been better off if she had been closer to her a lot earlier.

"Thanks, Kim.", Tara said gratefully, "I really appreciate you helping me with that. It's really nice to get good support like that from a friend."

Kim nodded, "You're really welcome, Tara. And as opposed to not getting good help from someone who's supposed to be a friend, huh?"

Tara frowned, knowing they both were talking about Bonnie, and muttered, "So true."

"Well, I'll promise you I won't be that way."

"Thanks.", Tara softly said in appreciation, "Ready?"

"Yeah, let's go make sure our BF's haven't been stolen."

"As if!", she said with a chuckle, "Nobody would dare with the two strongest cheerleaders around!"


	8. Chapter 7

**Author's Note: All is not well in Whoville tonight, folks, and not everyone is happy about the cheerleader and the chess champion being together. Things start getting a little more serious...**

**Chapter Seven**

**The Enemy Knight Moves**

The floorboards thundered ominously as the boys ran down the court toward the Middleton High side. Jason pounded the slats, dribbling hard and going straight for the basket as the Lowerton center started backing up, getting ready to hold his ground in the free throw zone, or as it was known to the players, the red zone. He secured a stable stance and prepared to guard against the lay up by Middleton's star center, daring him to draw the charging foul when Jason surprised him at the last moment, suddenly passing the ball behind his back and to his left to forward Bill Stowkowski. The Lowerton center's eyes were drawn off just long enough by the pass for Jason to dart around him to the right. By the time he realized what Jason was doing, it was too late to catch up. Jason charged the basket as the Lowerton man turned and tried to keep up with him. Bill took the ball and dribbled once, feinting to his left and drawing his defender off balance just enough to fake him out before he jumped and shot the ball. Approaching the basket, Jason leaped up, catching the ball directly in front of the goal and slamming it through with a loud bang, the ball whizzing through the net to the floor. Grabbing the rim, he swung there a couple of times in triumph as the Middleton crowd exploded into another frenzy of yelling and cheering, egged on by the cheerleaders somersaulting and shaking their pom-poms at the fans. He let go and followed the rest of the team back towards the other end of the court, high fiving Bill and the others as Lowerton prepared to take the ball back down. A sudden cheer routine intruded from the sideline as the Middleton cheer squad built an impromptu pyramid, and brought even more applause and noise from the crowd when Kim Possible executed another of her magnificent two story triple flips to the top, yelling and shaking her streamers vigorously to pull even more sound out of the audience.

Watching events unfold with sharp eyes, the Middleton basketball coach was frowning in consternation. It had been a brutal battle all night and both teams had poured their hearts into it.

"Three-Two!", yelled Coach Sanders, "Three-Two! Come on! Give me some defense! We're not out of this by a long shot!"

The Middleton squad prepared to ward off the Lowerton team now as they brought the ball down into their court. They trailed Lowerton by one point with less than a minute left in the fourth period of the regional playoff game. This winner would go to the state tournament. The loser would go home for good this season. It had been neck and neck the entire contest, neither side ever leading by more than four points at any time during the game, until this last quarter when Lowerton managed to score twelve unanswered points early on in the period. It had taken Middleton the rest of the quarter to catch up and they were pressing their new found momentum for all it was worth now, trying to keep the pace of the game going as fast as they could. This took advantage of the fact that Lowerton had used up their time outs and were already in foul trouble. The crowd enthusiastically cheered for their teams on both sides of the court. The constant din made it hard for the coaches and the players to hear anything, forcing them to yell as hard as the crowd. After forty-seven minutes of furious action, everyone was hoarse. The activity on the side lines was just as non-stop as the bench players were on their feet exhorting the teammates, and the cheerleaders were working hard whipping their bodies through their routines and urging on the roaring fans continuously without a break.

"Watch the left! The left!", yelled Skip Johnson. Jason glanced quickly and saw that was where the star Lowerton point guard, who they knew to be a fast break threat, was trying to sneak down to the corner for a quick three pointer. Bill quickly moved over to cover as Jason held the center close to the free throw line. The Lowerton guard pulled up, seeing the lay up path was shut down, and then dribbled the ball a couple times before passing off to the forward and heading into the red zone. Middleton's defense tightened up as Lowerton ran the shot clock down, unable to make any headway into Middleton's zone defense, then passed the ball to the fast point guard, their best long range shooter, who barely managed to get a three point attempt off before the clock ran out. It hit the rim and bounced off right into Jason's hands. The gymnasium erupted again in moans and cheers as both teams took off again to the other side of the court

Jason charged down the center with the ball trying to see if he could set up the same play he had just pulled off, but Lowerton was ready for him this time. They weren't about to repeat that mistake. Their zone defense adjusted and now their fast point guard was all over Bill. Jason tried to feint to the right but the Lowerton center was there, forcing him to pull up. Less than thirty seconds were left.

Nothing was going to stop the clock now. Lowerton had no time outs, and they weren't going to foul Jason while they were still ahead. The seconds slid away as Jason dribbled the ball in front looking for an opening. Raising his hand, he quickly flashed three fingers to his team mates. Immediately, Bill feinted a move deep then backed out. Jason passed the ball to him and headed towards the basket. He was jostled by elbows as he passed through, covered so closely that Bill was unable to find an opportunity to pass to him. Jason had to come on through to the left corner. Bill had to pass to Dan Helmsley and go into the red zone himself. Lowerton kept the inside coverage tight and there was still no opening. Dan passed to Skip Johnson and hit his route through the middle as Jason moved back around to the free throw line, closely dogged by the Lowerton center. They tried the routes two more times, but without success in opening up a route to the inside. As they looked for an opening to drive to the basket, the crowd began to chant.

"Jason! Jason! Jason!"

The Middleton fans yelled his name out in unison, almost drowning out the cries of "Defense!" by the Lowerton audience. Everyone was on their feet now, yelling and screaming at the top of their lungs, knowing the game deciding shot was coming up.

Fifteen seconds left in the game and on the shot clock, and it was pure bedlam in the gym. Skip received the ball in the corner and tried to feint down the base line, but the Lowerton man didn't buy it and held position, blocking him out. Jason finally felt it was time and charged into the red zone, closely followed by the Lowerton center. He held his hands high above his six-four frame, hoping to take advantage of the extra two inches of height he had over his counterpart. He pushed hard against him trying to hold ground as his opponent kept pushing back against him to keep him away from the basket. Ten seconds.

Skip passed back to Dan to his side. He dribbled a couple of times trying to feint his way into the lay up, but couldn't get through. He quickly looked at Jason and saw him nod just slightly. Skip very subtly nodded back. Five seconds.

Jason suddenly broke away from the Lowerton center, going away from the basket and causing the Lowerton man to stumble. Simultaneously, Skip passed the ball to him. It was almost intercepted as both Lowerton forwards charged from their positions towards him. Jason took the ball in midair and landed just outside the three point line. Both Lowerton forwards were immediately on him and followed him up as he leaped, stretching their arms high to block the ball. But Jason had five inches on each of them and the fall away jump shot easily sailed above their fingertips towards the basket. The buzzer started ringing as the ball reached the top of its arc and floated downwards. As if in slow motion, the tenths of seconds on the time clock seemed to take forever to tick away. The ball got closer and closer, then finally swished through the net without touching the rim.

The gymnasium exploded in raucous joy as the Middleton players poured onto the court, followed by the crowd of students filling the floorboards from one end to the other, screaming, celebrating, and dancing in sheer jubilation. The rest of the basketball team gathered Jason into their arms and lifted him onto the shoulders, yelling his name over and over again as multiple hands patted him on the back and shook his own, all acknowledging their conquering hero.

In the midst of the madness, Jason looked up and found Jeremy in the stands, clapping and whistling loudly as their two dates clapped just as enthusiastically. He grinned broadly at his friend, giving him a thumbs up sign, which Jeremy returned between vigorous applause. It was Jason's night tonight. Everyone would pay him homage here. The team gathered around him as the coach was grinning and pumping flesh, trying to conduct an interview with the local news in between. The teachers were smiling broadly and clapping for him as much as the students. The cheerleaders jumped up and down in sheer joy, yelling and striking poses and waving their pom poms and streamers, smiling huge smiles, all except Tara.

Actually, Tara had a smile too, just not much of one. She seemed glad that they won the game, but something held her back. Obviously, it was what was between them. She waved her pom poms around like the others to keep from standing out, but it was clear she nowehere near as enraptured by his game heroics as everyone else seemed to be. She caught him looking at her and quickly averted her eyes. She didn't want to acknowledge him at all, he thought, as if to deny him his achievement. He felt slighted, like he meant nothing to her. She froze for few seconds, glanced once more, catching him still looking at her, and after another second she turned and left, blending into the crowd. Jason stared into the roiling mass of bodies trying to find her again, but was overtaken by everyone else demanding his attention, and he was forced to acknowledge their praises. But the knot in his gut wouldn't go away. He looked up and around, searching, and for a moment everything else faded into the background. The noise seemed to dull down and go silent as he scanned the crowd fruitlessly for her again, remembering two days prior.

* * *

Jason was getting ready to leave the gym and head for the auditorium for the pep rally when Jeremy came in.

"Hey, Jace."

"Hey, Jer."

"Listen, I got our dates for game night. You're going to love this chick. She's really hot!"

Jason smirked as he pulled on his windbreaker, "Yeah, that's cool, Jer. As long as the rest of the guys think she is too, you know. I got my rep to protect."

"Come on, man! You'll like this girl! This is one the team won't have a problem with, believe me! You don't have to worry about that. And it'll definitely be better than those two you dug up for Oscar's.", he replied with a frown.

Jason's face went a little sour, "Look, man. They were cool. They knew how to be laid back and all."

"Maybe a little too much. All they did was drink like fish!"

"Fishes."

"Whatever! They drink as much as you do."

Jason got a little angry with that, "Hey, man! I'm getting tired of you harshing on me about that. I can hold my liquor just fine! Thank you very much!"

"Yeah, whatever.", muttered Jeremy. Then he sighed and said, "Look I don't want to argue, okay?"

Jason sighed and replied, "Yeah, okay."

"Good. Listen, you remember Angie Walker from the class ahead of us. Well, she and I are going out and I convinced to bring her roommate along. Now I want you to promise me you will hold down the drinking, okay?"

Jason rolled his eyes and said in irritation, "No prob, man! I got it covered."

"Okay. I've got to go pick up an assignment from English Lit. I'll see you after the pep rally."

"Sure thing.", replied Jason as Jeremy left the gym. He sighed, thinking about doing this again. He had lost count on how many times Jeremy had tried to hook him up with some girl. Jer knew by now that if there wasn't going to be some 'action' at the end of the evening, he shouldn't even try to set him up with anyone. As far as him being interested in anyone for more than the obvious, it would have to really be someone special. And so far, Jason hadn't really gotten Tara out of his mind. It was bad enough she had dumped him, something he had never experienced before, but he still thought she was the best thing he had ever come across, Bonnie Rockwaller notwithstanding. He chuckled as he thought, 'Naw, Bonnie's way too bitchy for me.'

He smiled as he tied his shoes and gathered his backpack together, stuffing it again with his books and things before starting out the gym door into the hallway. Just as he pushed on it, the door suddenly resisted him with a thud, throwing him backward. Someone else was trying to come into the gym. Startled, he backed away until the girl on the other side pulled the door open and walked in. She saw him and stopped cold in her tracks.

"Whoa!", he said as she was coming through, "Almost didn't see you..."

He recognized her.

"Oh. Hi Tara."

She stared at him in surprise for a second before a sullen look came over her face, clutching a couple of books to her chest and calmly pulling her hair back behind her shoulders with her free hand. She glanced at Jason briefly, but just as quickly averted them, not wanting to look him straight in the eye. She looked uncomfortable.

"Hi, Jason. I was just coming in to get some of the cheer equipment."

"Isn't that in the girl's gym?"

"We had some late practices in the boy's gym the last two days."

"Uh, yeah.", he stammered.

There was an awkward pause as he tried to say something. She wouldn't wait.

Tara walked past him, saying, "I've got to get the stuff. Pep Rally's about to begin."

"Right.", he said, "Look, Tara. I'd like to talk."

She stopped and stood still, her back to him for several moments, then in resignation she seemed to relent and turned to face him.

"I don't think we have anything to talk about, Jason.", she said firmly.

"Why?", he asked, "It's not going to hurt? All I want to do is to explain."

"Explain what?"

"Well, you know. The party and stuff. I think there's some things we should talk about."

She frowned, "What do you mean?"

"Well, I mean that, uh, you need to know what really went down at the party..."

"The party?", interrupted Tara, getting angry, "You want to explain what really happened at the party! You're going to _explain_ what you and Bonnie did to Kevin at the party? _As! If_!"

"Hear me out!", he said, desperation starting to creep into his voice, "Look, I agree that what we did was kind of low. But you know that it was all Bonnie's idea. I just was trying to have some fun with the guy."

"And you expect me to believe that?", she said, clearly appalled at him, "You know, when we were dating, Jason, I knew you had some weird stuff going on. But I thought you were friendly and kidded around a lot, and you're a really great basketball player and all that. I thought those were just little quirks that you had. But I found out soon enough just what kind of person you really are!"

He frowned at her, "What do you mean, 'really' are?"

"I mean I found out exactly what you think of people, how you think you're so much better than everybody else!", she shouted at him, "You and Bonnie are two of a kind, you know that? If she wasn't still dating Brick, both of you would deserve each other!"

"Hey, at least she would respect the quality of the people she associated with!", he fired back, losing his temper, "instead of some dweeb who can never appreciate you for what you are!"

She blinked at him, stunned at the statement, "Never appreciate me? For what I am? This coming from the guy who did nothing but show me off like some trophy and only paid attention to me when he wanted me to give him some!"

That hit home. That wasn't the way it happened in Jason's mind, and he tried to object strongly, "Now, wait a minute, Tara! That's not true and..."

"Not true?", she yelled, interrupting again, "Like _hell_, it's not true! It was the same every night! Go some place to meet your friends and gab all night about how hot your girlfriends are and how you're going to win State, and then off to some out of the way place so I can squirm like an eel when you try to manhandle me!"

"But didn't you want to be with me?", he retorted.

"_Not as some side of beef for you to enjoy whenever you wanted!"_

He looked away a second, hesitating before answering, "Okay! Okay, Tara. Maybe I didn't see what I was doing there, got a little carried away, but I understand that now. I'm willing to make some compromises here. But work with me on this. You've got to come half way, too."

She stared at him, gaping, the look of disbelief on her face saying how clearly what she though of that.

"Jason,", she said in a subdued yet still angry voice, "I don't have to come halfway for anything! I have a boyfriend who treats me a hell of a lot better than you ever did or ever can! It's done! Get over it!"

He stood there rooted in place, shocked, just gazing at her, "You cannot be serious about that nerd! He is so beneath you! Beneath us!"

From under half hooded eyes, Tara coldly glared.

"There _is_... ...no 'us', Jason.", she said evenly, her voice literally freezing the air between them, "There will _never_ be... ...an 'us'. And if anybody is beneath anybody here, it's you that is beneath him!"

"Tara."

She cut him off with a huff, spinning around on her heel and stomping off to the storage room at the opposite end of the gym. He followed wanting to try to talk some sense into her, but Kim and Jess entered from one of the side doors. As soon they came in, they stopped dead and stared, seeing Tara walking angrily away from him. It was easy to see that they'd had words. He stopped when he saw them too. For a moment he thought about still going after Tara, but the looks on Kim's and Jess' faces made it pretty clear that wasn't a good idea. He decided it wasn't the right time after all. Slowly, he turned around and exited the gym with his backpack.

After Jason left, Tara reached the closet door and angrily pulled it open, slamming it into the wall. She began pulling out the poms poms and other equipment as Kim and Jess came up to help.

"You okay, Tara?", asked Jess, worry in her voice, "That looked pretty intense there..."

"I'm fine.", replied Tara gruffly, obviously not, reaching into the closet and roughly grabbing the stuff there and handing it to the other two, "He said he wanted to talk. But he's still just spouting the same old 'food chain' crap! I can handle him!"

"You sure? You look pretty cranked."

"I'm cool, Jess. Really.", she said, calming down, "I'm more irritated than anything else. That's all."

"Okay.", said Jess, "I'll take this load out then. See you on stage."

"Sure.", intoned Tara as she continued to hand a couple of megaphones and streamers to Kim.

Jess walked off. Kim waited until she was gone before saying, "Listen, Tara, I'm sure you can handle him, but..."

"It's okay, Kim.", Tara replied as she closed the closet door and gathered up the rest of the equipment, "He is a class 'A' jerk, but he's not going to do anything more than talk."

"Well.", Kim said, "Just in case, there are some advantages to having a friend who happens to, you know, save the world every now and then. So, if you need me to handle him for you."

Tara smiled and replied, "I appreciate it, Kim. But I really don't think it will be a problem. I can take care of any problem with Jason. We just accidently ran into each other, that's all. I make a point of avoiding him when I can, and so far it's worked pretty good. It probably won't happen again, and if it does, I can still handle it."

Kim nodded, "Okay, Tara, but you know who to call if you need me."

"Yeah, I do.", said Tara, "Thanks for being a friend."

Kim grinned widely as she answered, "No big."

* * *

"And now", announced Coach Sanders over the microphone, "I want to introduce to you the next State basketball championship team!"

The student body stood up and roared their approval at the pep rally as the band struck up a couple of passages of the fight song, the cheerleaders dancing a short routine with them. Once finished, they quickly settled down and the band took their seats again as the cheer squad broke off into individual shouts and yells. They quieted down as the basketball coach continued.

"From our starting line up, at forward, Bill Stowkowski!"

The coach clapped enthusiastically with the audience as Bill ran on stage from the wings and shook his hand. He waved to the cheering crowd as took his seat, the cheer squad yelling and jumping again for the students, waving their pom poms and streamers. The coach continued speaking quickly to get the rest of the starters out on stage.

"At the point guard position, Skip Johnson!"

The tall lanky blonde ran on stage with a smile, waving and grasping Coach Sanders' palm with his own before blowing a kiss to his girlfriend in the front row, then sitting down.

"Also at guard, Dan Helmsley!"

The audience erupted again as the tall Junior walked swiftly on and grabbed the coach's hand and pumped it up and down a couple of times before sitting down next to his team mates.

"At the other forward position, James Magness!"

Jimbo was a tall good looking black fellow who sauntered on stage and high fived the team before engaging the coach in a strong hand shake. He was a handsome guy, and Kim knew Monique had trained her eye on him for some time. Unfortunately for her, they also knew he was seriously dating someone from Upperton High.

"Now last year, you knew our next player as being our great star forward of last year. He was a tremendous asset in that position. Now the graduation of Jake Harwood last year left us a hole at the center position, one that was not easy to fill, especially when changing from another position. But this is something that this young man has ably achieved well beyond our expectations, not only filling that position and making it his own, but excelling in it, just as he had last year in a completely different job. That, ladies and gentlemen is talent, and it is a rare one. So, finally! Put it together for our all region, all state star center, at six foot four inches, averaging 42 points a game, Jason Morgan!"

The crowd shot up to their feet yelling louder than before as Jason walked onto the stage smiling broadly, high fiving his team mates as he walked towards the center of the stage and grabbed Coach Sanders' hand in both of his. He turned to the crowd and waved to them, being sure to acknowledge the right and left wings with a smile and holding both hands clasped together over his head. As he looked to the left, the cheer squad was lined up there, all performing some great individual jumps and yells. He could see Tara at the far end, looking out into the crowd and smiling, waving her streamers limply. It seemed to him her smile was painted on. He looked only for a moment, then went and sat down next to his team mates and Coach Sanders quickly introduced the other members of the team, also to the adulation of the audience, although not as vigorously as for the main squad. Once they were all out on stage and the din had died down, Coach Sanders started to address the students again.

"Ladies and gentlemen, this year, we have our best chance of winning State in the last ten years.", the coach said, "But we need the help of everyone in this school. We've got the best team, but even the best team isn't going anywhere without the support of the students. It's you who make the difference."

He pointed out at the crowd to make sure they paid attention to his next statement.

"It takes you! And you! And you!", he said as continued to point, "You are as much a part of this team as all ten of these guys up here with me. Remember, this team, as great as they are, is not going to make it without you. You are as integral to it all as they are. So when we play the Lowerton Lemurs this Friday, we need each and every one of you out there on the boards with them. If you are there in force, then I will guarantee you that nobody's going to stop us!"

The crowd roared again as they came to their feet, cheering and clapping as the cheer squad suddenly bounced into action again. The band blared into the fight song again. From the corner of his eye, Jason saw Tara still standing fairly still, waving the pom poms and doing little else besides smiling. Noticing he was staring at her, Bill elbowed him slightly.

"Still got the hots for her, huh?", he whispered with a grin..

Jason's look soured as he replied, "Her? Hell, no! She's old news. Besides, she got to be some kind of serious head case to date that nerd she's hooked up with now."

"The chess dude? Yeah, I heard about that. But he seems okay."

Jason turned and frowned at him, "Okay? The guy's a loser, man! All the way. She just can't see that!"

Bill backed off a little, "Okay, okay, man. No need to get a 'tude. If he's bad news, it'll work against him in the end."

Jason turned and looked back at Tara again, staring at her intensely as she stonily looked out at the crowd with her painted smile.

"Yeah", he said half to himself, "It'll work against him."

* * *

It was all Jason Morgan could do as he was carried aloft by his team mates, the crowd and the band joyously cheering and honoring the conquering hero in their midst with their unbounded admiration. All he could think about was Tara. The fans crowded around, fawning over and patting him, shaking his hand, congratulating him over and over again as he strangely thought only about his ex-girlfriend. As if in response to that thought, he worked his way back down to the floor and kept busy shaking more hands and being congratulated by everyone within reach as he tried to make his way through the crowd towards the tunnel. But people were coming up from everywhere, delaying his passage to the showers, everyone smiling widely and pumping both his arms up and down, praising him for a superb job well done and giving him well intentioned wishes for the State tournament.

Jason smiled back and gladhanded each and every one of them, all the time silently moaning, especially when the news crews descended upon him. He couldn't get out of this, so he stood there stiffly with Coach Sanders giving the required interviews to all three local TV channels, giving the standard humility speech he had carefully worked out in the past and hoping the entire time it would all just end soon. Usually he enjoyed himself hugely when he basked in the limelight like this. It was what he lived for. After all, he deserved it. But this time, he couldn't wait to get away. When he finally spotted Jeremy waving at him from the tunnel entrance, he'd finally had enough. Telling the reporters he had to get showered and dressed, he broke off and pressed through the remainder of the crowd, which was now finally beginning to break up, and met his friend at the hallway leading to the dressing rooms.

Jeremy held his arms out and grinned at him like a loon, yelling in pure pleasure.

"Awesome, Man! Way to go!", he cried, grabbing him in a huge bear hug, and laughing the whole time he tried to lift him into the air and swing him around. But his five foot six frame couldn't get the tall center's feet into the air.

"Hey!", exclaimed Jason, laughing, "Put me down! You'll never get me up there, you small fry!"

Chuckling, Jeremy put him back down, "If I only had a couple more inches, I could do it!"

"Yeah, but you ain't got it. You better stick to your hockey."

"You bet. Thank God there's a sport us medium sized white boys can play!"

"Got that right, dude.", replied Jason, chuckling, "Look, let me get dressed and I'll meet you outside, okay? There's going to be a little celebration in the dressing room for a while, but I won't be long."

"Sure. The girls and I will be in the car out in the parking lot. Don't take too long."

"Okay, see you there."

Jeremy took off down the hall as Jason slowly turned towards the dressing room, trudging in with the other players who were showing the exhaustion that overtook them, now that the game was over. But it didn't faze the great joy they all felt. The Lowerton Team had pushed them to the limit, but they came through in the end. He had done it, proven he was superior. All was right with the world. He just wished he felt it.

* * *

Jeremy lurched his SUV to a halt in the driveway at the private residence. He didn't know which team member it belonged to, but his parents had to be out of town for this to happen. This was the fifth spot he tried since taking the girls back to their dorm, but it sounded like it was the most likely place when he finally heard the basketball team was celebrating here. He was in a pique, which started after he had waited a good thirty minutes outside the gym and Jason finally called him to cancel out on the dates.

Flabbergasted he was standing them up, Jeremy yelled at him for all of ten seconds before Jason hung up on him. Turning to Angie and her friend, he apologized and offered to take them both to dinner which they accepted. All in all, they had an enjoyable time, marred only by Jeremy's underlying displeasure with his friend. But because of the underlying tone of what happened, It ended up being an early night anyway, and Jeremy soon had them back home at their dorm room, promising Angie he'd give her a call later. After that, he set out on a hunting expedition, calling people and finally tracking Jason down to this house.

Hearing the rap lyrics blaring through the walls, he walked up to the door and knocked. Nobody answered. After several more moments, he simply opened the door and walked in. The music hit him like a sledge hammer, making him wince as he looked around through the haze that hung in the air. From the foyer he entered, he followed the noise until he came to a den area where the crowd was as thick and loud as the cigarette smoke that wafted across the room. It looked like there were a lot of college aged kids here also searching for a good time. But it was all centered around a group of taller high school seniors parked around one table and matching shots with each other. Grimacing, he spotted his quarry there. Now it was a matter of pulling him out.

The Middleton basketball team had won their crucial victory earlier in large part to Jason Morgan's clutch three-pointer at the end buzzer, and there was no denying the celebration going on now, loud and raucous, surrounded by their friends, their fans, and others. Tequila shots were lined up, hands grasping them as their owners looked around the table in challenge, the crowd hollering as they awaited the signal. Someone said, "Go!", and six shots were quickly downed into six throats followed by the twenty-four ounce beer chasers. They gulped down the golden liquid amid the chants of "Go! Go! Go!" until one finished first and slammed the beer mug onto the table with a loud rap, much to the pleasure of the crowd who clapped and cheered, at times pounding him on the back. The others also finished up and wiped their mouths, all six dribbling foam.

"Hah! Told you I'd do it!", yelled Jason, the winner of the round.

"Yeah, yeah," cried Dan Helmsley, "Let's see if you hold out, Morgan!"

"Not a problem, man!", he replied, laughing.

"Okay! Another round, Morgan!", said Bill Stowkowski, "I got five that says you won't win this one!"

"Oh?" kidded Jason, "and you think your Polack butt is going to beat me?"

"This Polack butt will kick your lily white keyster all the way to Upperton!"

"_As if_! Is this any way to treat your star center?", roared Jason at him, laughing.

"Hey! What are friends for?", replied Bill, laughing as hard, 'So is it a bet?"

"You're on! Sucker!"

The crowd roared as the drinks were set up. Jeremy edged in quietly and stayed close to Jason, watching the contest as it unfolded. As they were getting the beers, he leaned in and whispered into Jason's ear.

"Hey, Morgan. You better cut it some slack. It looks like you've already put away a lot."

Jason turned to him, his face already a little red, "Oh! Hi there, Jer. Hey, listen, I'm sorry about tonight. I just wasn't in the mood for any, you know, female company."

"Pretty damn rude to bail out of a date at the last second, don't you think?", fired Jeremy back under his breath.

Jason squinted at him, drunk enough not to be fazed immediately.

"Hey, It's no big deal, man.", he said with a slight slur, "Look, I'll call them up and apologize, okay? Just give me their phone number and I'll make it right."

"Not until you're sober, man. You're going way overboard again."

"With good reason, man! We just won regionals! We're going to State! And you know I can hold it. Besides, there's no way I'm going to let Bill take my money!"

"Yeah, whatever.", Jeremy replied, obviously not satisfied, "Whose place is this, anyway?"

"Steve Jarvis, you know the second string guard."

"Oh, yeah."

"His parents are out of town.", said Jason, letting a hiccough out.

"So I gathered.", Jeremy dead panned.

"Well we could hardly go to Oscar's in our letter jackets, you know.", replied Jason, grinning, "Fake ID's wouldn't cover that."

Yeah. Listen man, you're already having trouble just sitting up on that stool, man."

Jason frowned, "No, I'm not, Jer! I'm cool! Now give it a rest. I got a contest to win here."

"But, Jason."

He was cut off as the beers arrived and the crowd started to chant again, drowning him out. Jeremy looked at his friend with growing concern as he downed yet another shot and started chugging the beer, then another.

* * *

Two hours later, Jeremy drove his SUV away from the party with Jason parked in the passenger side, slowly moaning with his head leaning up against the window, drunk out of his gourd again. Fuming, Jeremy thought hard about the problem he had, or rather the problem that Jason had. For the last several months, Jason had really been hitting the booze. Hi alcohol consumption was reaching new heights and it was seriously worrying him. In the recent past, at least one or twice a week, he'd ended up having to take him home, rescuing his truck the next day from wherever they had to park it. He was starting to come in late to school with hangovers too, sometimes not even remembering what had happened. If he wasn't the star center, they would have nailed him already. But those were the perks of being a jock, which as a star hockey center he knew too well himself.

The thing that worried him though was why. He knew why and he didn't know how to fix it. Jason was no teetotaller, and he'd pulled binges before, but the drinking didn't really start to get out of hand until Tara broke up with him over the summer. He could not understand at all why he should be so worked up over her, but he obviously hadn't gotten over it. He actually liked Tara himself, but was really pissed at her for doing this to his best friend. And then to add insult, she started dating that chess nerd. He tried setting Jason up with some other girls since then, but he didn't care for any of them, except physically, and tonight was no exception. Less often as not these days, he was going stag to functions anyway. It didn't really matter anymore. It was getting harder and harder for Jeremy to fix him up as most of the girls who knew him were shying away because of the drinking.

He kept trying to figure out how to get Jason's mind off Tara. But it was hard as about the only time he would talk about her was when he got this drunk, and he hated talking to him when he was this drunk. Whenever he got this wasted, he'd always go off on some rant about her, swearing to get her back and pound that runt into dust. He simply wouldn't listen to reason. He was mulling all this over in his mind when he hit a bump in the road and Jason came awake, startled.

"Wha! What the... ...Things cool, man?"

He looked at Jeremy bleary-eyed, smacking his lips a couple of times, and wiping the spittle off of his mouth with his sweat shirt.

"Yeah, everything's cool. You okay?"

"Oh, yeah. Jus' fine. H'w. Where are we?"

"Just heading home. We can get your truck tomorrow, okay? I'll pick you up in the morning."

"Uhhh, like last time, huh?"

"Yeah, Jace, like last time."

Jason leaned back into the seat and looked vacantly out through the windshield.

"Yeah, man. That's cool. I used to do that for Tara, you know."

Jeremy groaned inwardly.

"Did you see her at the game tonight?", Jason went on, "She wouldn't even look at me you know. All she'll do is look at that damn chess nerd! I was the hero of the game! Sank the three pointer that won the playoff spot! And what does she do? Nothing! Won't even congratulate me! She'll just look at him! What does she see in that bottom feeder anyway?"

"Who knows, Jace?", Jeremy replied, "She's a girl. Nobody knows what goes on their minds."

"Yeah, but why her? Why did I have to fall for that one?"

Jeremy grimaced, thinking, 'Here we go again.'

Jason kept mumbling, "She was so perfect. Why couldn't she see how much I cared for her?"

"Why can't you stop talking about it?", Jeremy yelled back in exasperation, "Like, there's nothing you can do! This is only the millionth time you've mooned over her!"

"But I don't understand."

"Geez, Jason! You gotta forget all about her! She's history! And she isn't worth it!"

Jason didn't answer, continuing to stare out the windshield with that forlorn look again.

"Damn!", muttered Jeremy to himself.

They went on down the street silently for a couple more blocks when Jason began to frown. He sat up and fixed his attention on the parking lot of the all night drug store just as they were passing it, his eyes getting more excited.

"Hey, Jer! Pull in! Pull in!"

Jeremy jerked his head over and said, "What? What is it?"

"Stop here, man! Stop!"

Jeremy pulled his SUV to the curve and Jason jumped out before Jeremy could ask him why. He staggered towards the drug store. Jeremy parked and followed him. When he got to the parking lot, he saw what had gotten his attention, and groaned again.

Kevin Guberman was walking out to his father's BMW from the drug store.

**Author's addendum: Things are busy for me over the next couple of months, but I will try to get the next chapter out in the next 7 - 10 days or so. Thanks for your patience.**


	9. Chapter 8

**Author's Note: Kevin encounters a dangerous situation, and gets help from an unexpected direction. But the fallout only intensifies the coming battle**.

**Chapter Eight**

**The Queen's Knight is Threatened**

"Kevin!", yelled Dr. Warren up the stairs, seeing the light in the hallway coming from his room, and wondering why at this time of nght.

'He's probably working late on his computer again.', she thought.

"Yeah, mom?", the answer came from there.

"What are you doing up so late?"

Kevin came down the hall and stood at the top of the stairs where she could see him.

"I only got home an hour ago. Tara and I went to a late movie, and I was just doing some stuff on the computer."

"You shouldn't stay up so late, son."

"But it's Friday night, Mom."

"Well, that's true.", she conceded as she walked into the kitchen, "It's not that important. I was going to wake you anyway."

"What for, Mom?"

"Come down a minute, okay? I've got something for you to do."

"Sure.", he said, skipping down the stairs to the kitchen to where she waited.

Donna Warren plopped her purse onto the kitchen counter and sighed heavily, thinking, 'God, these call nights aren't getting any easier.'

It had been a long night. She was on call for the Middleton Space Center medical ward, and although she was the medical director, she still shared call with all of the other doctors on staff.

Unfortunately on this night, she had to go into the emergency room and admit one of the astrophysicists who worked there, an elderly gentleman, for a bad pneumonia. His congestive heart failure had made it more difficult to manage and she was forced to put him into the intensive care unit. She had only just now gotten home, well past midnight. She sat down at the table as Kevin entered and smiled briefly at her, understanding.

"Had to admit him?", he asked.

"Yeah", she replied, "Took forever trying get an IV started, but he had no veins. Finally had to put in a central line myself, which took more time. Then I had to get the consult in to the cardiologist for his CHF. He didn't call back right away, so I had to wait even longer."

Kevin nodded, "Sorry it took so long , mom."

She smiled, "Thanks, son, but those are the breaks. But that's not what I need you for. On the way home I got a call from _Abo_. He's wheezing a little bit and I think his CHF is kicking up a bit too. I found out he ran out of his lasix yesterday and he forgot to refill it."

Kevin rolled his eyes, shaking his head, "He's getting 'ornery' again."

His mother grinned, "Well, you know how he hates to take pills."

"Yeah,", he admitted, "I know."

"What I need you to do is to go and pick him up and take him to the all night drug store so he can get his prescription. I wish they would let you do that for him, but you know how picky they are about giving prescriptions out to people who aren't the patients themselves or family members. I've already called it in. He'll end up going to the bathroom all night, but I don't want him waiting until tomorrow and getting into really bad trouble. I don't need to be admitting him either."

"Okay, mom. No big."

"Take the BMW.", she said tiredly, "Your father's already in bed asleep. I'm hitting the sack myself."

"Sure thing. I'll take care of it.", he said as she trudged upstairs to the master bedroom.

Kevin quickly changed out of his sleepwear and headed out the door, grabbing his father's car keys on his way out. He started up the sedan and headed out on the streets, finding them nearly deserted as would be expected at three in the morning. It only took fifteen minutes for him to arrive at _Abo's_ doorstep. He knocked three times, and waited. Slowly, his old mentor opened the door. He was dressed to go, but did look a little weak, his gait a bit unsteady.

Kevin looked at him sternly, "_Abo_. You know better than this."

Dr. Estevez shushed him, irritated, waving him away with his free hand. He used his cane with the other to steady himself, shuffling past Kevin out the door. Kevin could hear him wheezing slightly.

"Don't start, _mijo_, please.", he said a little breathlessly, "I just forgot. That's all. Now let's go and get the medicine and I will be okay."

Kevin grinned and shook his head. This was only about the tenth or twelfth time he had done this.

"Whatever you say, _Abo_.", he said, chuckling under his breath as he followed the old man out to the car and opened the passenger door for him.

His mentor slowly got into the BMW, and Kevin shut the door. He went around and got into the driver's seat, started up the car, pulled out into the street, and headed for the drug store.

"How's the breathing?", he asked.

"Not too bad.", the old man replied, "I just need to get the diuretic and get this extra water off me, then I'll be fine."

"Hmmm. You'll be up all night."

"I have already slept about five hours tonight. This wheezing is what woke me up."

"Do you want me to stay with you?"

Dr. Estevez chuckled, "That's very kind of you. _mijo_. But I don't think that will be necessary. You need to get your rest as well."

"I'm okay,_ Abo_."

He didn't answer, sitting heavily in his seat, standing his cane on the car floor in front of him. He turned to Kevin and asked, "So, did you and Tara go out tonight?"

Kevin smiled, glad _Abo_ had asked as he recalled the evening. They had a really good time.

"Yeah, we did. We caught a late movie after she cheered at the regional playoff game."

"Oh, did we win?"

"Sure did!", Kevin answered happily, "Middleton's going to the state tournament!"

"Excellent, Kevin! But it cannot be baseball. It's the wrong month. Tell me again, which sport is this?"

"Basketball, Abo."

"Oh, yes. Oh, yes. I forget. So I trust she is just as happy about the good news."

A thoughtful look came over him..

"Well, yes and no.", he said tentatively, "You see, she's glad Middleton won and all, But our star player is her ex-boyfriend. He actually won the game almost singlehandedly, and she felt a little ambiguous about cheering for the team and him, that's all."

"Ah, yes. You mentioned him before, this, ah, Jason person, I believe."

"Yeah, that's right."

Dr. Estevez puffed his lower lip out, a bit perplexed, "I do not see why she should be bothered by that. I remember you telling me how badly he treated her, but as you say, she was supporting the team, not him."

"I know. That's what I said, too, and she agreed. But she told me he had tried talking to her a couple of days ago, and he was just being obnoxious again like he usually is. I think that was part of what was upsetting her."

"And did you manage to make her feel better about it and that she should not worry about such nonsense?"

Kevin grinned, "I think so, _Abo_. She was doing a lot better when I took her home."

"Good.", he replied with finality, "Think nothing of it, Kevin. She'll be fine."

"Yeah.", Kevin replied, convinced _Abo_ was right.

They pulled into the parking lot of the drug store and Kevin parked the car near the front entrance. He got out and went around to the passenger side, opening the door. Dr. Estevez gradually shifted his feet out onto the pavement, then held his hand out for Kevin, who helped him up out of the car. The old man slowly turned with his cane and shuffled into the drug store with Kevin following close behind.

Inside the pharmacy. Kevin browsed the shelves aimlessly as he waited on his old mentor, who sat down in a chair close to the prescription counter. It was only a few minutes before it was ready and he collected the medicine and paid for it. He slowly turned around as Kevin came back to check on him. Dr. Estevez smiled, waved the small bag at him, and headed for the door.

"I'll go start the car, _Abo_, okay?"

"_Bueno_, _mijo_, I'll be right behind you."

* * *

"Hey, Mom."

Jill Monroe looked up from her book and smiled as her daughter came through the door...

"Hi, honey. Did you have a good time?"

"Yeah. It didn't start that way, but it ended up great."

Jill frowned, "Is there a problem with Kevin?"

"Oh no, Mom.", Tara quickly corrected, "It was just things were sort of weird at the regional finals. That's what got me kind of down, Kevin's been absolutely great. By the way, why are you still up?"

"Oh, I couldn't sleep, so I thought I'd wait up for you."

"Mom."

"No, really, honey. I just couldn't sleep. You know how much I care for Kevin. I don't have any concerns there."

Tara smiled and came over, sitting down on the floor next to her mother's easy chair.

"Thanks, Mom. That means a lot to me."

Jill smiled back at her, "So what was the matter?"

"Oh, it's really no big. We won the regionals, and it was Jason who pretty much did it. I think he had like thirty-eight points and threw in the winning shot at the buzzer."

"So why does that bother you."

"Well, you know. Now that it's 'Jason this' and 'Jason that'. He's the big school hero now. Everybody's talking about him and what a great guy he is and all that. The thing is, a couple of days ago, I accidently ran into him, and he tried to talk me into coming back into seeing him again."

"Hmmm.", her mother replied thoughtfully, "And?"

"And nothing. I shut him down. Period."

"Good. So why the problem?"

"It's really nothing, I guess. It just bothered me, some of the trash he said, but it's been okay ever since Kevin and I talked about it."

"So you're not bothered by him any more."

"Not at all.", Tara said, smiling up at her mother, "Kevin always can do that for me. He makes me feel better about pretty much everything."

Jill looked at her daughter, seeing the glow in her eyes as she talked about her boyfriend.

"Just like your grandfather, huh?", she said softly.

Tara kept gazing at her, slowly nodding, "Yeah, just like Grandpa. I wish he were still here."

Her mother reached out and pulled Tara into a warm hug, nuzzling her head into her daughter's hair as she spoke.

"I do too, honey. I do, too."

They held each other, enjoying the moment before Tara spoke again.

"I should have been there those last two years."

With a mild snort, Jill pulled back and looked Tara in the eye.

"Honey, you know it's not your fault. Don't blame yourself."

"I don't, really. I just wish I had those two years, you know. He really went downhill so fast, and I wasn't thinking about him at the time like I should have."

"Honey, you were thirteen. You had a lot of other things going on in your life. He knew that."

"Yeah, probably. But I kind of wish I could have heard it from him, you know, that he knew why I wasn't there for him, that he really understood."

Jill smiled at her.

"I know, dear. But I'm sure he knew and did understand, really."

Tara could see how sure her mother was with that.

She smiled back, "Thanks, Mom. I needed that."

"Glad to help.", she replied, "But it's late. Off to bed with you."

"Okay.", Tara said as she got up and headed upstairs, "I'll see you in the morning."

* * *

Kevin walked out to the car and was pulling on the door handle when he was suddenly slammed from behind into the door. His head banged onto the roof trim momentarily blinding him with pain, and he held his hand up to the small cut that had opened up over his right eyebrow. Recovering his wits, he turned around and found his stomach in his throat as he saw a grinning Jason Morgan towering over his head, the alcohol coming off of his breath nauseating him. Jason laughed malevolently at him.

"So. What'cha doing out this late at night, nerd?" he said menacingly, "Don't you know the streets are dangerous around this time?"

Kevin took his hand down and looked at it. There was a slight amount of blood from the cut, but it was minor and had already started to stop. He squinted back up at Jason.

"Not that it's any of your business, but I was helping someone get some medicine."

Jason chuckled again as he bent over Kevin, backing him into the side of the car, "Oh? Being the boy scout, huh? Or maybe you were just trying to score some beer, huh? I wouldn't put that past a conniving little twirp like you."

Kevin got angry, "Yeah, well only a jackass like you would think..."

He was cut short as Jason suddenly reached up and grabbed Kevin's throat in a strong grip.

"If I were you, nerd,", Jason hissed as Kevin struggled to breathe, "I wouldn't be talking trash to somebody who outweighs you by a good hundred pounds. Especially when you are such a loser."

"Am I interrupting something here?"

Startled, Jason shifted his stance and looked in the direction of the voice, puzzled to see an old man holding a small bag shuffling on a cane towards them.

"None of your business, old man.", he said tersely, "Just a little disagreement we need to settle. So get lost!"

"I see.", replied Dr. Estevez calmly, "Well, I'm good at settling disputes. Perhaps I can help you out."

"Beat it, geezer!", Jason shot back, "It's no concern of yours! So..."

Jason gasped, losing his breath when the old man punched the end of the cane into his chest so hard, it knocked him away, forcing him to release Kevin. Kevin relaxed, grabbing the side of the car and taking some deep breaths as he held his throat with one hand.

"I beg to differ, young man.", said Dr. Estevez coldly, "Especially if you are going to be such a _pendejo_."

Jason staggered back up erect and glared at the old man.

"I don't know who you are.", he yelled angrily, "But you better back off!"

He tried to grab Dr. Estevez's cane and pull it away from him, but was surprised when the old man suddenly gripped it in both hands and twisted it in a circular motion, easily slipping it out of Jason' grasp. He raised it up and jabbed Jason in the neck just beow the Adam's apple. Jason gulped and choked, sputtering as he fell to the ground. But it only took him a few seconds to recover his voice, angrily getting back up, coming towards the old man.

"Mister! I don't know who you are!", he said in an enraged tone., "but you are _so dead_ right now!"

He almost reached the old man, but was stopped abruptly when Jeremy ran up and grabbed him..

"Jason! What the _hell_ are you doing?""

"Nothing!", he spat out, "Me and the nerd were just having a private discussion when this geezer comes up..."

"Is that you, Jeremy?", asked Dr. Estevez.

Jeremy Wendell froze in place. He stared in surprise at the old man and paled, stuttering, "Uh, Dr Estevez! Uh, hi! I, uh, didn't know it was you!"

The old man looked hard at him, '¿_Tu sabes este maracon_? You know this... ...person?"

"What did you say?", yelled Jason hotly, "Did he just dis me?"

Jeremy ignored him, looking truly embarassed at Dr. Estevez, "Uh, well, yes sir, yes. He's my friend. Look, sir, he's just drunk. You got to cut him some slack."

"I am not!", Jason contradicted, trying to wriggle out of Jeremy's grasp.

Out of patience, and despite their size difference, Jeremy turned angry, violently muscling Jason around to put himself between his friend and the others. He glared at him, his eyes angrily confronting Jason...

"Shut up, Jason! Shut the hell up! You listen to me! Get back to the truck! Now!"

Jason became confused, not understanding his friend turning on him like this, and surprised at his vehemence as he did it.

"Wait a minute, Jer! why are you doing this? But I was only..."

"I don't care!", Jeremy yelled, spitting in his face, "This is nuts! You're only going to get in trouble. You're too damn drunk!"

"But."

"Go!", Jeremy screamed at him, pushing him away roughly.

Jason stumbled away gazing at his friend in stunned surprise. Dumbfounded, he mumbled something as he trudged unsteadily back to the truck.

Jeremy turned back to Dr. Estevez sheepishly. By now, Kevin had caught his breath back and stood next to the car, watching intently.

"Uh, look sir.", he said rather humbly, " I'm really sorry about that. You gotta understand, he's really an okay guy. It's just that every now and then he drinks a little too much and... ...and..."

Dr. Estevez frowned at him, clearly disappointed, "Jeremy. I've known you since you were quite small when I took care of your mother as my patient. I did not expect a nice young man like you would associate with such a, how should I say it?... ..._un cabron_?"

Jeremy's face paled. He recognized that word.

"Sir, please.", he pleaded, "He's really not that bad."

"That is hard for me to say judging from what I just saw."

Jeremy grimaced. Kevin could see he was trying to find some reasonable explantion. It was clear he respected his mother's physician too much.

"Look, I know it looks bad.", Jeremy said, "But he's been going through a really bad time lately, you know. He's been having some..."

He glanced briefly at Kevin before looking at the old man again.

"Uh, some girl problems."

"Hmmm.", Dr. Estevez mused, "Still no reason for him to be harassing _mijo_ here."

Jeremy looked at them both, glancing back and forth, finally seeing they had come there together. 'How did the chess nerd and Dr. Estevez know each other?', he wondered.

"Uh, yeah, you're right. Listen, I've got to get him home, okay? I'm really sorry about this, really. Like I said, he's just a little drunk, you know."

"Looks like he's a _lot_ drunk to me.", replied Kevin in irritation, still massaging his throat.

Jeremy shot an angry glare at him for a moment, but let it go as he addressed the elderly doctor once more.

""Yeah, whatever. Uh, you have a good night, Dr. Estevez..", he said as he started backing away, "You too, uhh."

"Kevin."

"Yeah, right."

Jeremy turned and ran back to his truck. Kevin could see Jason sitting dejectedly in the passenger side. They stood there and watched as Jeremy fired the truck up. With tires screeching, he shot off into the darkness and out of sight.

Dr. Estevez looked down and sighed, shaking his head. Kevin opened the passenger door amd let him get in, then got into the driver's seat. They buckled up and started back to the retirement village, remaining silent for a few moments before the old man spoke.

"Such a shame.", he said sadly, "Jeremy had always been such a nice young man. Why would he associate with such a person?"

"Well, he's into the 'food chain', _Abo_."

Dr. Estevez looked briefly at him, disappointed, then snorted.

"He should know better.", he said in irritation, "His mother is such a nice woman."

Kevin didn't reply, lost in thought about something else.

"How did you do that?", he asked, "I mean with the cane. It looked kind of like fencing."

Dr. Estevez laughed, "Not exactly, _mijo_. When I first came to this country, I was interested in martial arts, which is why I am so happy you have taken up fencing. This was back in the late 1950's and the Korean War had ended some years before. I found a Korean gentleman who had emigrated here to Middleton who was a teacher of the art."

"Really? What did he teach?"

"He taught _Tae Kwon Do._"

"I've heard of that. Is it like Kung Fu?"

"Yes and no. My particular style is just one version of the art, called _Chung Do Kwan_, or 'School of the Blue Wave'. Kung Fu tends to be more of a softer martial art, with a lot more hand techniques, such as wrist locks, pressure points, and holds. Tae Kwon Do is what is called a 'hard' martial art, with a lot more strikes, kicks and punches. Primarily it depends on kicking techniques. Of course, it has been a very long time since I practiced it. It is a young man's art, really, but I still remember a thing or two."

"So is that what you did with the cane?"

The old man smiled once more, still chuckling, "No, _mijo_. There is another Korean martial art called Hapkido, which my old instructor also knew and taught. It is somewhat famous for techniques which use a cane as a weapon."

Kevin smiled, "Cool! I never knew any of this before! How come you didn't tell me?"

"You never asked, _mijo_! And you never had any interest in martial arts of any kind until recently, except chess of course!"

Kevin laughed, "Well, yeah. Still I'm surprised."

"Oh there are yet a few things about me you don't know,", he said smiling.

Suddenly, he began to cough mildly.

"Are you alright, _Abo_?", Kevin asked with concern.

Getting the cough under control and wiping his mouth with a handkerchief, the old man answered, "Yes, Kevin. I am fine. I am not doing that badly yet, and the medicine will clear this up very soon. But I am rather glad young Jeremy showed up when he did."

"So you know him, huh?"

"Yes. He would often come in with his mother to the office. I took care of her for several years before I retired. I am still quite surprised that he would know that, that hooligan."

"You called him something else.", Kevin said looking sideways at him.

"Well, as I have said before, the Spanish words I use for such people are far less kind."

Kevin laughed, "Yeah, I can imagine."

"He called him 'Jason'. If I may hazard a guess, that was the boy who used to be, uh, _el novio ultimo de tu querida, verdad_? ...hmmm, Tara's old boyfriend as you would say?"

"Yeah.", Kevin replied with a grimace.

"Well.", he said with finality, "She is certainly far better off with you, is she not?"

They both looked at each other and started to laugh as Kevin turned the BMW back into the parking lot of the retirement home.

* * *

On Monday morning, Tara Monroe strode through the halls of Middleton High with murder in her eyes. Several people said 'hi' to her, but she completely ignored them as she paced down the corridors. Seeing the seething of emotion on her face, most of them didn't hold it against her. She certainly wasn't thinking about being friendly after finding out what happened the day before, which she practically had to drag it out of Kevin when she saw the cut on his eyebrow while visiting Dr. Estevez. They had gone to his duplex after they had gone to her church that morning. As she walked purposefully towards the boy's gym, she was still reeling with shock that it actually happened, going over the conversation in her mind again and again.

* * *

"It's so good to see you again, _preciosa_!", Dr. Estevez exclaimed, "You are looking as lovely as ever!"

Tara smiled radiantly as she hugged the old man. Kevin could see he was indeed feeling better since Friday night, and he was breathing easier.

"Thanks. It's so good to see you too, _Abo_.", she replied, beaming.

"How is the chess work going?"

"It's going great!", Kevin interjected happily, "With her on second board, we're sure to win the city championship again!"

"Good!", responded the old man, laughing, "Very good to hear. I trust you are keeping Kevin on his toes then?"

She looked at Kevin briefly before answering, "Well, I do my best."

"Best?", retorted Kevin, "I can't even play any White King Pawn openings against her anymore. She's got the ten variations of the Sicilian down pat and will wipe the board with me if I even come close to trying that."

"And here I thought it was just that you loved Queen Pawn openings so much.", she said teasingly.

"Well.", he replied coyly, "If it's the Gambit Accepted."

He winked at her and she laughed.

"Ah, I see.", said Dr. Estevez, smiling, "Well I look forward to the tournament then. By the way Kevin, is your head all right? That cut is healing okay, yes?"

Kevin's smile dropped away and he said uncomfortably, "Uh, yeah, Abo. It's fine. No prob..."

Tara turned to him, "Yeah, I wanted to ask about that. How'd you get that?"

Kevin's tone turned mildly nonchalant as he replied, "Oh, I hit my head against the car door."

"Yes.", added Dr. Estevez testily, "After that hooligan pushed you."

"_Abo_!", Kevin cried.

The old man blinked and a look of concern came over his face as Tara's eyes opened wide. She looked at Kevin in consternation.

"I am sorry, _mijo_.", the old man said contritely, "I had thought you had told her."

"Told me what?", she demanded, staring hard at Kevin, "Well?"

"It was no big, Tara. Just a little accident."

"What hooligan?", she said, getting angry, "Who did this to you?"

"It was nothing, Tara.", Kevin replied in exasperation, "It's just a small cut. No harm done. We straightened it out."

"Who are 'we', Kevin?", she said, her voice rising, "Come on! Spill! Was it Jason?"

Kevin rolled his eyes and looked away, sighing. But he couldn't avoid Tara's piercing glare, or telling her the truth. He gazed back at her.

"Look, Tara. He was drunk. He didn't know what he was doing."

"He could have hurt you!"

"No, Tara. It didn't happen, I'm okay. We, I took care of it. Everything's fine."

* * *

But everything was not fine as far where Tara was concerned. She hadn't thought Jason capable of this before, which was what had troubled her so much as she stormed down the hallways of Middleton High. Kevin finally coughed up all the details, trying to reassure her that everything was okay. Once she had heard everything she waned to hear, she did stop pestering him about it so that they could enjoy the rest of the day together without it hanging over their heads. But she had not forgotten, and she intended to do something about it...

Coming up to the gym doors, she shoved them open hard against the walls on either side as she walked through heading straight out onto the court in the middle of basketball practice. The doors slammed loudly, the sound echoing for several seconds. Everyone there turned their heads to see what the noise was about, watching Tara making a beeline straight towards the only person in her sights. Coach Sanders frowned as she walked towards the figure practicing his shots at the free throw line of the far basket. He was concerned about her attitude, but only watched for now as he had a feeling what was about to happen. The object of Tara's search was concentrating so hard on his shooting that he didn't even turn to see what was going on, just aiming his next shot from the free throw line, until she walked up and slapped the ball out of his hands. Jason looked up in surprise at her, noting the fury on her face.

"Uh, hi Tara!", he said timidly, "This is a surprise. What's going..."

"You know _damn_ well what's going on, Jason Morgan!", she hissed, interrupting him, "What the _hell_ do you think you were doing going after Kevin like that!"

Jason's head snapped back in shock.

"Wha? Wait a minute, I..."

"Did you think beating him up was going to change anything between you and me?"

Jason stared slack-jawed at her.

"What are you talking about, Tara.", he protested, "I didn't beat anyone up!"

"Don't lie to me!", she grated at him, "I saw that little souvenir cut on his forehead you gave him!"

He blinked again, flabbergasted, "What? Wait! Tara, I swear to you! I don't know what you're talking about!"

Suddenly going quiet, she looked at him with such a look of disgust that his blood ran cold, her demeanor changed from fire to ice in an instant. Getting right up into his face, speaking so softly he was the only one who could hear her, she said her next words in a steady voice.

"I am not going to stand here and listen to any more of your crap.", she said as coldly as he had ever heard her, "You listen to me, Jason Morgan. If you ever come near him or me again, I will make you regret it. I'll report you so fast, and do whatever I have to do legally, and I swear you won't know what hit you! You understand me?"

Jason blinked twice, then tried to smile disarmingly, 'Tara, I..."

"_Do you understand me_?", she yelled at him, making him flinch. He couldn't answer her. Stunned, he could only stare as her voice echoed throughout the otherwise silent gym.

"I'll take that as a yes.", Tara said in a low voice after a moment.

She turned on her heel and strode out towards the gymnasium doors just as purposefully as she had come in. But before she reached them, her way was blocked by Coach Sanders. She stopped and looked up expectantly, waiting for him to say something.

"Young lady.", he said tersely, "I think we need to talk. In my office. Now."

She grimaced as he motioned for her to go before him, and he followed her alongside the wall of the gym to his office. After they entered in, he closed the door behind him as she sat down heavily in a chair in front of his desk. He walked around his desk and slowly seated himself in his office style recliner behind it, gently leaning back as he regarded her steadily.

"I'm hoping you have a good explanation for that little display out there, Ms. Monroe.", he said calmly.

Tara gnashed her teeth quietly, then answered, "Mr. Sanders. I apologize for that, but I had to... ...It's just something that he did that we had to get straight between us."

"It's okay.", the coach replied, "If this has anything to do with what I think it does, no apology is required. I am not entirely clueless as to what goes on with my players."

Tara breathed a sigh of relief, "Thank you, sir. I appreciate that."

'But I do need to know why. Therefore I need to hear what happened to make you walk up to one of my players and verbally take his head off."

Tara's mood dropped lower. She had hoped to keep this more private.

"Sir, I'd rather not take it that far yet, if you don't mind."

He stared unblinking at her.

"I mind, Ms. Monroe, a lot.", he said sternly, "What happened?"

Reluctantly, Tara repeated what Kevin had told her. When she finished, he sighed in resignation with no hint of surprise in his reaction. It seemed to Tara he was halfway expecting something like this.

"You weren't actually there, right?", he asked.

"No, sir. I wasn't.", she protested, "But I'm telling you exactly what happened. Really."

"Relax, Monroe. I don't doubt your story. But I'm going to have to talk to Kevin. If I take any action on this, I want an eyewitness account. You can go now. I'll take it from here. But I would appreciate it that you not talk to anyone else about this for now."

"Sir, do you really have to do this?"

"Yes, Ms. Monroe. I think I do."

"Yes, sir. I see.", she said quietly as she got up and left.

Unfortunately, she had already told Jess, so it was all over the school by the next day. During basketball practice, the players' moods were definitely diffrerent. The enthusiasm they had the pevious day was clearly gone. Everybody seemd to just go through the motions of practice, a tenseness permeating the air. They only stopped momentarily as another student meekly walked into the gym and looked around briefly before heading along the side wall towards the coach's office. He could feel every eye on him, a look of malice and suspicion in each one as they tracked his every step. He stood a moment at the coach's door until they slowly resumed their practice, all except for Jason who remained frozen in place, a hostile look on his features as he watched Kevin knock on it.

Kevin opened the door and went inside after hearing the coach telling him to enter, glad to finally end the feeling of Jason's eyes stabbing him in the back after closing it behind him. When Kevin shut it, Jason kept looking at the door, a frown worrying his face for several more moments. He sighed in frustration realizing there was nothing he could do about it, and he went back to some footwork drills and a drill practicing his fall away jump shots over the next fifteen minutes. The gym filled up with the sounds of basketball practice again for that time until they all heard the door to Coach Sanders office open up. The gym went quiet again. Everybody stopped, looking intently at who emerged from it.

Kevin trudged out, glanced briefly at Jason with an unreadable look, and slowly headed out of the gym. Coach Sanders' face was another matter. With a look of anger, he turned his gaze to Jason.

"Morgan! In my office! Now!"

* * *

It had been a terrible week. Jason Morgan, the star center and the best hope for a state championship had been suspended from the team for the rest of the season. The school administration gave no reason for it, but it was common knowledge around the school. Jason's father threw one heck of a fit about the whole thing, threatening to sue the school district. But this time, the administration did not back down. Coach Sanders had been instrumental in the past in protecting Jason and his other players. They were his boys, his basketball team. He knew boys would be boys sometimes. But this time he knew it had gone too far. Jason had crossed the line one too many times. Unfortunately, the story that the students heard got so distorted that by the time it came out, it was Kevin who ended up being the villain, having instigated a fight for which Jason was not to blame, and he ended up having to withstand the withering glares and cold responses of his classmates who blamed him for it.

It was not much better for Tara. Except for Jess and Kim, the rest of the cheer squad blamed her just as much for Jason's suspension, like it was her fault since she was the one who dumped him and turned him into this raging alcoholic. Bonnie was even worse, constantly biting at her with her acerbic comments until it almost got to a knockdown drag-out, at which time Kim had to get between them and keep them separated. Practices were ineffectual as the two girls would not cooperate, and Kim finally just had to call a halt to them for the time being. Not that it was going to matter that much. Without Jason on the team, Middleton's chances at State were next to nothing.

Kevin and Tara trudged through their school week in isolation, able to rely only upon their closest friends and themselves for support, stoically enduring the snide asides and stares. They spent Saturday together and went for burgers and a movie, going back to her house in the evening where they sat silently in the love seat watching the trees sway serenely in the light wind, shielding their eyes against the sun dipping just underneath the horizon.

Kevin lay with his back against the side arm of the love seat, Tara in his arms, leaning against him, the back of her head on his shoulder as they gazed out across the greening spring landscape now changing colors in the light of the setting sun. After a long while, Tara quietly spoke the words she had been contemplating all evening.

"I'm so sorry, Kevin."

Kevin softly kissed her on the temple and stroked her hair as he replied, "Don't apologize, Tara. No way this is your fault. Heck, I was going to report it anyway."

She snorted briefly and smiled, "As if, Guberman! Stop trying to make me feel so guiltless. You wanted to keep it even more quiet than I did. You knew what kind of reaction we'd get if it came out this way."

She sighed as she gazed outward at the trees.

"I should have waited until I saw him alone. Instead, everyone saw me trash him in the middle of the gym. I practically guaranteed it would all come down to something like this."

"He brought it on himself, Tara.", he reassured her, "You are not to blame. And anybody would understand why you wouldn't want to be alone with him at any time."

"Yeah, maybe.", she murmured.

Kevin smiled to himself a bit and gently stroked her hair again, "Listen, Tara. This is going to blow over. Wait and see."

She sat up and turned around, looking deep in his eyes.

"You know. I can see what you and the chess club go through now, having to live through this kind of hostility. It's kind of sobering, being on the receiving end of it."

Kevin nodded, "You get used to it after awhile. Eventually you just ignore it because in the end it doesn't mean a thing. You have your friends and family and you depend on them, and that's all that's important."

She smiled, nodding, 'You're right."

He raised a hand and caressed her cheek with the back side, "But even more important, for me at least, is that I have you here with me. I care so much for you, Tara. I really do."

Her eyebrows knitted slightly as she gazed at him. 'Did he try to say he loved me just then?', she thought, 'Why couldn't he say it?'

"And I feel the same way about you, Kevin.", she replied cautiously, "Nobody makes feel as good or as appreciated as you do."

He leaned in and kissed her softly.

"You are the girl of my dreams.", he whispered.

He kissed her again. Tara put her arms around him, and pulled him down on top of her on the love seat, inviting his lips closer and closer to hers.

"I think you need to prove it here and now, mister.", she said just before his mouth found hers again.

**The next chapter should be out in a week or so. The conflict of the middle game of this chess match will only intensify...**


	10. Chapter 9

**Author's Note: All is not well in Middleton, and events are quickly coming to climax. You will also notice a tie in with the "Resolution" storyline as well. The next chapter will be the most crucial one, so enjoy the cliffie. (Yes, I'm evil. I know it. MWAHAHAHAHAHAAA...)**

**Chapter Nine**

**The Enemy Pieces Reposition for Assault**

The clean mirage of the island in the middle of the lake, reflecting off the surface, broke up with the ripples from the stone as it sailed over the water. It only took four skips this time for it to make it all the way across to the island shore, disturbing a small flock of geese gathered there as it pelted into the sand near them. The geese honked in irritation, strutting away from where the stone landed, glancing around quickly for the danger they were worried it brought. On the lake shore itself, the tall muscular teenager gazed out in their direction, but did not really see them. He was not concerned with anything that might worry the geese. His eyes glazed over as he stood there, almost motionless, before stooping down and picking up another pebble He reared back and flung it as hard as he could across the lake surface just as the ripples from the previous toss smoothed out. The pebble bounced jaggedly across the water and landed near the geese again, close enough to startle them into take flight and head away to the other side of the lake. The young man paid them no heed, staring at everything and nothing. He was still for a moment, then walked slowly back up the shore again, as he had been doing, going back and forth, for the better part of the afternoon.

He didn't hear the noise as much as sense it, at first. When it finally did reach his ears, he knew immediately who it was. He did nothing about it, just standing there looking out over the lake. The SUV that disturbed the quiet of his thoughts slowly cruised in and parked beside his truck. The door opened to reveal a shorter teenager who got out slowly and shut it. He looked around and quickly spotted the object of his search on the lake shore, sighing and shaking his head before walking up to him. He stared out over the lake with the taller boy, not speaking for a good half minute.

"Didn't think you'd find me here.", the taller one finally said.

The other boy shrugged, "Wasn't that hard. You were nowhere in town, so I figured you were at the cabin. This was probably about the only other place you'd go."

"Yeah.", said the taller boy, "That makes sense. I guess you know me pretty good, Jer."

"You're my best friend, Jace. What'd you think?"

Jason turned and grinned at him, "You're right. I shouldn't be surprised."

"So, what up, man? What'cha doing here?"

Jason's face soured again as he looked back out over the lake.

"Hell, man. I had to get away. After the shellacking the team got from Upperton High in the state tourney, I just had to get away. Damn, I should have been there! That sunk so many chances for me. I'll be lucky to get a bench warming spot at Podunk College, now."

"It's not that bad, Jace. You got way too much talent to ignore. You can still walk onto a major college team without a problem. And you sure don't need the scholarship to pay for it."

Jason looked down at the ground for a moment before peering out over the lake again.

"Maybe.", he muttered, "It would have never happened if that damn nerd had screwed me over."

Jeremy grimaced, "What did you expect? Especially after what you did."

"I didn't do nothing!", retorted Jason, looking at him angrily, "I don't start fights, man! I finish them!"

His friend shook his head in exasperation, "Jason, are you kidding? How can you say that? Especially after they talked to Dr. Estevez!"

Jason snorted angrily and walked off, still looking out over the lake as if it somehow had an answer to his dilemma.

"I don't know about the old geezer, man!", he said virulently, "I found out he's thick with the nerd's family, has been for years. Taught him to play chess. He had to have changed his story to back his little protégé up."

He gazed back at Jeremy, sure that his friend would support him in this, but was surprised to see him looking upset.

"He doesn't do that, Jason.", he said tersely, "I've known him a long time."

"How would you know?", Jason challenged, "You weren't there until the end of the fight."

"What fight?", cried Jeremy loudly, his eyes going wide, "There was no fight! You were on the ground! Drunk out of your gourd again! There was no fight because he put you down."

"No way, man!", Jason yelled, "That nerd could never do that to me!"

"Not him!", interrupted Jeremy, "Dr. Estevez!"

Confused, Jason's head snapped back, staring in surprise, unable to respond while he digested that.

"What are you talking about?", he quesried, "How could that old man..."

"I saw that much, Jason!", Jeremy said angrily, cutting him off again, "He punched you with the end of his cane and you were so drunk you stumbled and fell!"

They both became quiet, the words hanging between them.

"You don't remember, do you?", Jer said.

Jason looked askance at him, not wanting to admit it, but grudgingly said, "No. I don't."

"Any of it?"

Jason frowned and took a deep breath. Letting it out he turned away and began walking down the shore line again. Jeremy caught up and walked with him, neither speaking for some time.

"Last thing I remember,", said Jason, "was getting into the truck with you after the party at Jarvis' place."

Jeremy nodded silently, saying nothing at first.

"Yeah, so how do you know it happened the way you said?"

"I just know.", Jason replied haughtily, "I don't go after people like that."

"Even the nerd?"

Jason studied the ground again before staring back up at him.

"Not unless he started it.", he said in definite tone, convonced he was right, "You don't know, man. You weren't there at the beginning."

Jeremy frowned again and looked away, "Well it really doesn't matter now, does it? They're going with his story."

"Got that right.", Jason muttered in disgust.

There was nothing left to argue on that point. They continued to stroll down the shore in silence. Jeremy started to enjoy the spring weather a little, and was able to relax.

"I thought you were grounded.", he said after a time.

"I am.", Jason replied, "Got a spare set of keys to the truck."

"But your dad..."

"...is gone on another business trip for three days and Mom's too busy at work to notice. They'll never know."

Jeremy's eyebrows rasied up at that, "Jeez, I couldn't get away with that with my parents."

"Maybe that's better for you.", Jason muttered as he picked up another stone and threw it across the water.

"So, what now?"

"Well, Dad managed to get me back in class, so I can graduate on time without having to worry about summer school. I just have to keep things quiet until I'm done. Then I'll go look for a university that will take me."

"That shouldn't be too hard."

"Yeah. I've actually already had a couple of phone calls from university officials at a couple of places."

"Good."

"You're still headed for Vancouver, aren't you?"

"Yeah, it's a great college program they have there."

"Hey, I'm glad for you, Jer. You're a damn good hockey player. You deserve it."

Jeremy smiled, "Thanks. But you'll do good real good, too, man. Really. Just wait and see."

Jason smiled back and said quietly, "Yeah, thanks."

Jeremy picked up a dead branch and dragged along in the sand, creating a jagged line behind him as they skirted the water. Deep in their own thoughts, they reached the end of the beach-like area where the trees came up right to the water's edge, then turned around to head back in the direction of the trucks. Jason was musing over his options, trying to keep from being too worried about the future, and enjoying the company of his friend. Jeremy being there really bolstered his courage and mood. But Jeremy was fretting about the next words coming out of his mouth because he knew they might really stir Jason up. Still, he was determined to say what was on his mind.

Finally, Jeremy said, "There's one thing, Jason. And I'm telling you as a friend. You have _got_ to stay off the booze now."

Jason didn't look at him, but pursed his lips and nodded slowly, clearly telling Jeremy he knew it.

"I know, Jer.", he replied quietly, "I've already started. Haven't had a drop since regionals, almost two weeks now."

Jeremy breathed easier, glad that his friend was accepting of the truth at last, but he was still tense. He knew the next subject might be even worse.

"That's good, Jace. That's good."

They walked further for another minute until Jeremy got enough courage to speak again.

"There's one more thing, Jace."

"Yeah?"

"You have got to put this Tara thing behind you once and for all. It's done. Over. You've got to get on with your life."

Jason stopped and stared hard at him.

"Yeah.", he murmurred as he turned and looked out over the lake again, squinting at the bright flashes of sunlight blinking off the water.

"Yeah."

* * *

"_Will you get it in line, Tara_?" shrieked Bonnie as the blonde girl struggled to keep in step with the rest of the girls, "It's bad enough, you lost us State! I don't want things to go south at the Mad Dog Day recital!"

That was one step too far for Tara. She abruptly stopped the routine, dropped her streamers, and walked off the line straight at Bonnie, her rage clearly etched on her face.

"That's it!", she yelled, "Either you get off my back or so help me!"

"Or what? You loser!", shouted Bonnie, standing her ground, equally angry.

Tara had already raised her fists when Kim landed between the two of them, physically pushing them apart before they could get to each other.

"Stop it!" she screamed, straining to keep them apart, "_Stop! It! Now!_!"

With a final shove, she threw them both away from her. Furious herself, she looked at both of them in turn.

"That _is_ it!", she yelled, "No more! This practice is cancelled! _As of now_!"

The rest of the girls took the cue to heart and didn't even complain, rapidly gathering their belongings and heading for the showers.

Still enraged, Kim turned to her co-captain, "Bonnie! You had better quit riding Tara! It's _way _so unfair! And I'm not going to tolerate it any more!"

"You can't boss me around, Possible!", Bonnie retorted, "I'm just as much a co-captain as you are!"

"Don't remind me! And you need to remember that _I'm the one_ who gave you that position! I'm beginning to regret it more and more every day! Now scat! Go! Get out of here, until you can control yourself!"

"No! We still have a lot of work!", Bonnie yelled, stopping when she noticed the gym was empty.

By then, the other girls except Jess had already disappeared.

Bonnie scowled, "Now look at what you've done! We'll never get that routine down in time, now!"

"Get out of here, Bonnie! Before I change my mind and let Tara have you!"

Bonnie blinked her eyes. She wasn't worried when the other girls were there, but now.

"I'm going to the administration about this, Possible!", she yelled over her shoulder as she walked towards the exit.

"Do your worst, Rockwaller!", retorted Kim, crossing her arms and frowning at Bonnie's back as she left the gym.

Once Bonnie was gone, her shoulders slumped as she let the anger go. She turned to look at Tara, who had folded her arms around herself, her face in anguish. Now that Bonnie was gone, she let the tears come.

"Why?", she yelled in exasperation, "What is her problem with me?"

Kim came to her and put her arm around her shoulders as Jess hugged her, letting her cry it out.

"I don't know, Tara. I don't know.", said Jess soothingly.

Tara quickly got herself back together and dried her eyes. Jess and Kim waited patiently.

"Thanks, guys.", she said as she let go, wiping her face clean, "I'll be okay. It's just that, you know."

"Yeah, I know."muttered Kim hotly, "Don't worry. She can't do anything with school admin. They've got her number already."

"Got that right", added Jess, "But next time, Possible, you ought to just let Tara have her. "

"I'd _so_ love to!", Kim replied, "But, you know I can't. I have to keep the peace."

"What about practice?"

"I'll worry about that when I get back."

"Where are you headed?"

"Oh, got this thing in L.A. I was invited to lecture to some elementary school kids on safety."

"In L.A?", asked Jess, "All the way out there?"

"Unfortunately." , Kim shrugged, "The price of fame, you know. I tell you, ever since Christmas, my life has gotten _so_ complicated."

Tara smiled, coming out of her blue funk, "Yeah, but in a good way, right? And it looks like the Ronster had a lot to do with it, too, huh?"

Kim blushed, smiling at that and saying, "I guess so, when he doesn't have foot and mouth disease, that is. But, yeah, he's really been amazing, mostly."

"That's great. Kim.", said Jess, "So are you going to be gone long?"

"Just a day, I think. Shouldn't take longer than that. I'll work on Bonnie when I get back."

"Good", said Jess, "In the meantime, I'll take care of Tara."

Tara frowned at her.

"Hey, Sundstrum, I don't need a babysitter."

"I know." Jess replied calmly, "But I do need to fix your mascara. You look like that raccoon that sneaked into the cafeteria and ate the mystery meat."

"You mean the one that died soon after?"

"Yep."

"Ouch.", said Tara with a wince, "Okay, let's hit the bathroom."

* * *

Bonnie barged thought the front door of her house in a huff, heading for the kitchen. Plopping her books down on the kitchen table, she opened the fridge and took out a Fruit-two-oh, popping the cap off. She took a good swig of it as she closed the fridge back up. She was still mad as baited pit bull, standing there, tapping her foot nervously, and replaying the afternoon's scene again through her head.

"Looks like you had fun."

Bonnie turned to see her older sister Connie leaning up against the door jamb.

"Another joyous day taking orders from her highness?"

"Can it, Connie!", she spat, "I don't need your pseudo-psychoanalysis!"

"I can see that, 'sister'.", she replied sarcastically, then said more softly, "But you could use my help."

"Huh!", Bonnie snorted, "After your little plan backfired the way it did at the cheer squad party last summer, I don't think your help would be much help at all."

Connie turned one hand and inspected her perfectly glossed nails as she replied lazily, "Hey, it's not my fault if the execution was faulty. You should have had your prize stud do a better job of taking Blondie back."

"As if!", retorted Bonnie, 'You heard what happened.."

"Yeah, well, like I said. I guess you really don't want to be captain that bad."

Bonnie turned on her sister, angry.

"I will be captain when I graduate!", she groused, "You just wait and see!"

"Not until you take care of the Blondie problem.", Connie cooed.

Contemptuous, Bonnie sneered at her, "And I suppose you have a way to make that happen?"

"Well.", she said coyly, "From what I understand, that trouble Jason got into was because the nerd started a fight with him, and he had to be bailed out, right? Then the nerd told some whopper that Jason started it all in the first place."

"Yeah. So?"

"Well, it would have been nice if someone had a video of it to prove him wrong, don't you think?"

'Huh!", Bonnie snorted again, "It's a little late for that!"

"Maybe not."

She frowned at her older sister.

"What do you mean?"

"What if they happened to meet again? What if nerd boy started something again? And then somebody just happened to have a cell phone handy."

'You mean, arrange a meet?"

"On the sly, of course.", Connie said, smiling, "Just let nature take its course. If he started it last time, just make sure Jason gets him to start something again. Then you can prove he lied the first time."

Bonnie stared at her sister thoughtfully, "Hey, you know that might just work."

"Of course it'll work.", Connie replied with a markedly devilish grin, "but you had better get it in gear soon. You only have a month to get Possible out of the way."

Yeah.", muttered Bonnie and she squinted her eyes in deep thought, "Yeah."

* * *

The next day saw things seemingly back to normal for the most part. Jason's dad had managed to reduce the damage so that Jason was only suspended for three days. He had been back in class since then for close to a week and a half. Everywhere he went, he was still greeted warmly by a lot of students, many of who offered their condolences for the raw deal he got. His team mates and some of the other jocks would come up and high five and shake hands, cheering him up and telling him they would have definitely won state if only he had been there.

Some of the teachers were similarly sympathetic, but most of them looked at him rather coldly. He frowned sullenly, thinking, 'Sure, they're going to take the nerd's side'. The one who gave him the most severe look was the calculus teacher, Mr. Amberson. 'That figures", he mused. Luckily, he never had take any of his nerd course classes.

But the coaches were another matter, especially Coach Sanders. Despite his own explanation of his side of the story, the coaches didn't really accept it. Some of them said that they understood, but they didn't sound too convinced. However, Coach Sanders made his view crystal clear, coldly letting Jason know that he was aware of Jason's drinking problem and that he was not about to contradict the word of a respected retired physician of the community. Jason knew then that his relationship with the coach was permanently altered. The only good that might come out of it was that the season was over and he was about to graduate, so it didn't really matter that much.

But even as Coach Sanders made it known he thought the fight was Jason's fault, he was willing to put it in the past as long as Jason wasn't drinking. He was really upbeat about the fact Jason had really stopped and was still willing to help him get into a college he wanted, but warned him he had to make a decision very, very soon. Jocks who were likely to get picked up for their skills could put off choosing a college until this late, but one month away from graduation was really pushing it. Jason was grateful for that much and had given him the list of colleges he was thinking of attending, as well as the list of scouts who had contacted him. The coach said he would follow up on those and other contacts.

He was thinking about that between classes as he changed his schoolbooks for the next course and closed his locker door, only to find someone's face hiding behind it.

"Hello there, Jason!", she said pertly.

He looked startled as he peered at Bonnie's smiling face.

"Oh, hey there, Bonnie. How's it going?"

"Just fine!", she purred, "I just thought I would come and say hi, you know, with all the rough things have been happening lately for you, what with the basketball thing and all."

"Uh, yeah."

"Listen, come and walk with me a bit while we go to class. After all you've been through, I'm sure you could use a little cheering up and stuff. Uh, let's go this way."

"Math class is the other way."

"I figured we take the scenic route. We got time."

"Uh, sure."

"So, you know that I've been talking to the cheer squad and they're all dying to know how you're doing and if you're all right."

"The cheer squad?"

"I'm not counting the obvious losers. You know who I mean, don't you?"

"Right. I get you."

"Anyway, It's just that this is _so_ unfair. I mean everybody who is anybody here knows the real truth. You know you should get a lawyer and sue."

They walked slowly down the hallway, Bonnie doing all the talking with Jason occasionally murmuring a 'yes', 'no', or 'sure' in between. He was wondering why she was being so nice, definitely unsual for her. He let her babble on, constantly reassuring him that things were going to be great and how nobody believed for a second the story that loser boyfriend of Tara's told had any truth to it. Jason and Bonnie were pretty good friends anyway. It was just that she was never this attentive unless she was really hot for someone, so it was kind of weird to him. But Jason continued to nod his head a she went on, actually enjoying the attention. Several students said 'hi' to them both as they walked along, including a couple more of the basketball players who came up smiling and giving him high fives. He traded a couple of quick comments with them before he and Bonnie went on down the hall. He could see the gossip mill already starting, too. Everyone was looking at them like maybe they were going to be a new item. He chuckled to himself.

Bonnie saw this also and smiled. Actually she wouldn't have minded. Jason was a hell of a catch and Tara was nuts to let him go. But she was at the top of the food chain, which meant she had to have the top jock, and that was Brick. As hot as Jason was, quarterbacks still had one up on him.

They turned around a corner to head back towards class. They had about two or three minutes left, and Bonnie was suggesting a get-together.

"So.", Bonnie continued, "I just thought that Brick and I and you could get together sometime and we could go out. I'm sure we could find you the right girl."

Bonnie looked over to find Jason wasn't beside her. She turned and saw he had stopped a few paces behind, staring at the side entrance to the auditorium which they had just passed. The door was open. Bonnie frowned and went back to see what he was looking at. Jason's face had gone white, looking stunned.

Bonnie peered into the deep shadows, squinting hard. She saw movement in there in the dim light. But then, she could make out two figures moving a short distance way from the curtains to where the available illumination from above would hit them just right. She saw what Jason saw. Tara and Kevin, the shadows camouflaging them well, but still clear enough for her to see them in an embrace passionate enough to melt steel. Bonnie smiled. She had calculated this right on the money.

Jason couldn't stop staring, his attention rapt, until he felt a tugging on his arm. Bonnie pulled at him silently, putting a finger to her mouth to warn him to be quiet. He looked at her blankly before looking back at the two of them, the angst of loss so clear on his face. Bonnie pulled again, harder, finally getting him to move and keep on walking, only now he trudged along, numbed into shock.

"Forget about it, Jason.", she said haughtily, "You definitely don't want to be seen around people like them."

He stared ahead, almost uncomprehending.

"She...", he muttered, "She..."

This was easier than she had thought.

"Come on, Jason!", she said supportively, "You really don't want to get involved with those kind of losers. Get real! They have no class. Do you know they are all over each other like that all the time, too. I mean like in Public! Like animals in heat! It's _so_ nauseating that they do that every night when he walks her home from his house to hers. It's_ so_ easy for them too since they live so close together."

"I got to talk to her.", he whispered, a look of agitation in his eyes, "I don't want trouble. I just need to ask her."

"What for, Jason? Really, you don't want to be seen around trash like that. It's not worth it. You don't want to start anything and get in trouble again."

"I don't want to start anything. I just need to talk to her."

Bonnie looked around as they approached the door to Math class, then said quietly, "Well, if you do, remember this. Don't start anything! Okay?"

The bell rung as Jason dumbly nodded at her, barely hearing her. He didn't move.

"We better go into class, Jason."

Nodding, he preceded her slowly and took his seat. She silently laughed in triumph to herself, barely able to keep her satisfaction private. Of course she knew all the different hiding spots where Tara would take her boyfriend when she needed privacy. After all she was the one who showed them to her back when they were freshmen. And she knew exactly how Jason would respond if he saw them like that...

'Boys.', she thought to herself, almost purring, 'They are_ so_ easy. Now that he knows how to find them. All I have to do is wait until the fireworks begin, and I'll be waiting.'

* * *

It was late. Jeremy Wendell entered the gym looking for Jason. He felt really good after yesterday at the lake. Jason seemed to have finally come around and made the decision to stop obsessing over Tara as well as stay sober. He really hoped this was the turning point for him, so that he could finally straighten himself out. They spent the rest of the afternoon joking and laughing, even wrestling like they used to before she broke up with him and totally changed his mood. The old Jason was finally coming back. Wanting to take in a movie, he was looking for him here thinking he might be checking with the coaches about his college prospects.

Running into Bill Stowkowski, he asked, "Hey, Bill. Running late today, huh?"

"Ah, you know how it is. Had some weight work to do."

"Sure do. Seen Jason?"

"Naw, but I saw him leave for home right after math class. Looked kind of funny too."

"Oh? Was he sick?"

"I don't think so. He was talking to Rockwaller before class, and he looked kind of upset. I don't know, man. Maybe he asked her out or something and she spiked him. You _know_ how she is. It's Brick or nobody."

"Yeah.", replied Jeremy, his brows furrowing in concern, "Got that right."

"Anyway, if I see him I'll let him know you're looking. Okay?"

"Sure thing. Thanks."

"You bet", Bill said with a grin as he left the gym.

'Why would Jason ask Bonnie out?', he thought, 'He wouldn't do that, but then why were they talking in the first place?'

Jeremy hashed it through in his mind. Why was Bonnie Rockwaller talking to him? He didn't care much for that bossy social climber, even she did have some useful contacts in hooking them up with dates. But if what Bill said was accurate, Jason was long gone, and Bonnie might have something to do with it. He regretted now that he had stayed so late, but the hockey team had been having some extended off season workouts going on for the next school year and the coach had asked Jeremy to help with one really talented freshmen, the one the coach had picked to take over for him. He had just finished with that, so it was close to six o'clock now. He pulled out his cell and called Jason, but only got voice mail. That worried him. He decided to go over and make sure he was okay. Jason never let anything go to voice mail if he could help it. He hated the annoying feature. As Jeremy walked swiftly towards his SUV, he decided to try and call Bonnie, but got the same thing with her.

"Damn.", he muttered to himself, "She always was too snotty to answer it unless it was somebody she really wanted to talk to."

He left a voice message asking her to call back and then slapped his cell phone shut, shoving it into his pocket as he approached his wheels. Opening the door, he climbed in and pulled on his seat belt, shoved the key in the starter and gunned the motor into life. His gut was bothering him about this and he was getting more and more concerned.

He screeched out of the parking lot towards Jason's house. Getting another idea, he pulled out the cell again and phoned Jason's house directly, but only got the answering machine. He wondered if Jason was there anyway. Noticing his speed was a little high, he remembered to keep under the speed limit as much as he could. Still, he took off in places he was fairly sure he wouldn't be caught. 'But if Jason was gone', he thought, 'that would be wasted time.' He needed help. He punched the cell phone buttons again, pulling up the numbers he wanted. The first one was Bill. It rang three times before he answered, much to Jeremy's relief.

"Hello?"

"Bill! It's Jer! Listen, I need some help. I can't find Jason. He's not answering his phone."

"What are you talking about, Jer? Is he in trouble?"

"I don't know. Bill. I don't know. I just got a bad feeling when you told me about math class."

"Are you sure, Jer?"

"I'm sure, Bill! Something's up. This isn't usual for him."

"What do you want me to do?"

"Get a couple more of the guys, will you? See if they can help find him."

"And if we find him?"

"Just make sure he's all right and not doing something stupid, okay? If you find him, call me. I'll do the same for you If I run into him first."

"Okay, man. I'll let you know."

"Thanks, Bill. See you."

* * *

Bonnie waited impatiently as she leaned up against the tree near the road to the nerd's house. It had been a little farther from Tara's home than she thought, but not so much that a good walk couldn't cover it. There would still be plenty enough opportunity for Jason to find them. She hefted the video camera in her hand, deciding to use that to get a better quality image than a cell phone. She had also parked her car well away on a side street so nobody should run into it, but was still close enough to reach quickly.

It was perfect. She had done some of her running on the track around this park, sometimes even with Tara, so it gave her an excuse to be here. She had dressed the part, too, just in case she ran into somebody that knew her. She was glad for it as the mud around the trees had really gunked her running shoes up. No way was she going to be out in this muck with good heels. She thought sourly how it rained so heavily a couple of days ago, making the ground wet. So far she hadn't seen anybody, and the sky was darkening again, thunder softly fluttering through the air from a distance. Looking up, she saw the clouds rolling in towards her.

Her face went sour, testily thinking, 'They better all hurry up and get here! I do _not_ want to get wet! I'll bet Tara and the 'nerd' are running late, as usual.'

She grimaced and folded her arms, looking out from behind the tree as she became more restless.

'Maybe he'll drive her home today because of the weather.', she worried, 'Well, there are other days. I know Jason was agitated enough to come out tonight and look for them. If they don't show, I can just meet him 'accidently' while running and..."

But then she spotted two figures slowly walking down the side of the road, a blond girl and brown headed boy about the same height.

Bonnie grinned evilly and whispered to herself, "Showtime."

* * *

Jeremy gunned the engine again as he raced down the street to Jason's house, screeching into the driveway. Looking around, he tried to find his truck and couldn't see it anywhere. 'It could be in the back.', he thought. Jeremy parked his SUV and got out, slamming the door shut and he headed for the front entrance. He knew Jason's mother wouldn't be home yet and his father was still out of town. That explained why there were no other cars in the driveway. He went up to the front door and rang the bell and waited.

There was no answer. He rang again and waited some more, his restlessness worsening. Trying the door, he was surprised to find it unlocked. Opening it, he looked inside cautiously.

"Hello!", he yelled.

"Jason? Are you home? Jason?"

No one answered. He was in the foyer of the mansion-like residence. Thinking Jason might be in the den, he walked in that direction when his phone suddenly rang. He stopped and open it up. Jason's name popped up on the ID.

Jeremy practically yelled into the receiver, "Jason! Where are you, man? Why didn't you answer me before?"

There was no reply at first, then...

"Uh, sorry, Jer. I was busy. But I had to find out... ..I have to ask... ...she never did that, you know."

Jeremy's face screwed up in surprise.

"Huh? What are you talking about, man? She never did what? _Where are you_?"

"She never did... ...what street?... ...uh, Aspen View?... ...I'm not sure."

"Jason!", screamed Jeremy, "What's going on?"

There was another dreadful silence except for the motor noise coming out of Jason's truck, then...

"She never kissed me like that, Jer... ...She never felt that way about me... ...like him..."

The phone went dead.

"Jason!", he cried.

The connection was gone. He stood in the den of Jason's house and wondered what to do, when he thought, 'Aspen View,' he said, "Aspen View. That's Aspen View Road!'

He turned to leave, punching speed dial to catch up with Bill Stowkowski and tell him where to go, but as he did his eyes fell on the corner of the room and went wide.

"Oh no.', he whispered, and then rushed out of the house as he dialed the phone, leaving the wet bar with its broken lock just as it was, the empty bottle of Jose Cuervo Gold laying on the carpet.

**Author's addendum: Here finishes the inbetween chapters I had to construct to connect the beginning and the end. I've already written the last five chapters and the epilogue, but will need to edit them a little. I should have Chapter Ten out by the end of the week. I hope you won't be on pins and needles for too long providing I did my job well enough. :-)**


	11. Chapter 10

**Author's Note: This is the climactic chapter. It is the darkest hour, yet also the most passionate and emotional. It is a turning point for almost everybody. This chapter is also why this story is rated 'M'. I hope it moves you as much as it did me when I wrote it.**

**Chapter Ten**

**The Queen is Attacked and Her Knight Defends Her**

"Ready to go home?", Kevin asked, opening the front door.

"Yeah, just need to take off my windbreaker.", Tara replied as she worked her arms out of the garment, "I'll carry it."

They exited the house and Kevin closed the door behind him, locking it as Tara went down the stairs. He quickly caught up with her on the sidewalk as they started down Aspen View Road in the direction of her home, taking their time to enjoy the walk. It was still warm, despite the breeze, and the two teens enjoyed the Spring weather that had finally enveloped the area. Tara was in cheer uniform even though there was no reason for it. She often wore cheer uniform to school on days like this when she didn't feel like dressing up. Kevin had been in his usual shirt and slacks, but changed to the more comfortable T-shirt and shorts once he got home. They walked casually down the side of the road, moving closer to each other, and Tara took hold of his arm with hers, holding on gently as they strolled...

"Thank you.", she said quietly, "for being there."

He smiled, "You don't have to. You never have to thank me at all for being there. You know I always will be."

She returned his smile, "I know. But I feel I should. It means so much to me that you _are_ there, always. Especially after what Bonnie did to me yesterday."

She frowned again remembering that last unpleasant sniping session Bonnie had inflicted on her. After that, Kim had cancelled all further practices indefinitely when Bonnie told her later on she was not showing up at all until Tara was off the squad. Obviously, that wasn't going to happen, but it now put a crimp in the squad's ability to progress without her. Kevin stopped and turned her around to face him.

"Hey.", he said softly, caressing her saddened face with his hand, "You can't let that get you down. You need to let it go, girl."

"It's harder than you think.", she replied, her eyes downcast.

"Then I'll do it for you. Lay it on me. Let me bear that hurt."

She looked up and gazed into his eyes, and smiled again, "I wish I could, G-man, wish I could."

"You can, Tara.", he said, his face vibrantly alive, trying to convince her he could, "You really can. I mean that."

She smiled wider as she took his arm again and resumed walking towards her house.

"I know.", she replied contentedly, "But I think this is something I'll have to do myself."

She grinned mischeviously.

"Actually, you did a pretty good job of 'being there' for me in the auditorium today."

He chuckled, "That's not exactly what I meant, not that I'm complaining, mind you! God, I love your kisses."

"Yours are even better!", she said, laughing with him.

Glad he made her laugh, Kevin gently took hold of her arm again, continuing to walk down the side of the road. Enjoying each other's closeness, deep in thought, they didn't speak for awhile, partly because darker things started to intrude their thoughts again. Tara returned to brooding over the sitch with Bonnie, trying to figure out how to handle it. Ironically, Kevin was dwelling on the same subject.

"Tara.", he finally asked, "Why is she so bent on getting you?"

She paused momentarily, then grimaced, replying, "It's got to be the captaincy of the cheer squad. She can't get it without the rest of the squad's support. And to do that, she needs me back as her friend and supporter."

Kevin pursed his lips in contemplation, "So, you mean, she's still trying to force Kim out of the captain's position? Even after all that Kim has done for her?"

"Yeah. That's always been her lifelong dream.", Tara said, "Not even everything Kim has done for her would keep her from running Possible into the ground if that's what it took. It's like she has this tunnel vision, like blinders. She can't see anything else."

Tara shook her head in frustration.

"I still remember how she told me all about her plans when we were freshmen. God, she used to talk about it all the time. She probably would have had it, too. She just didn't count on someone like Kim coming in and taking it away from her."

"Uh-huh, I can see how that would upset her."

She gazed down the road, looking irritated.

"But you know, her reasoning is so whack! Bonnie doesn't understand she'll never get me back this way, if at all now. The whole sitch that tore us apart as friends was the Jason thing, and she still hasn't gotten past that! Damn 'food chain!"

Kevin nodded, "True. But on a good note, I hear Jason's not drinking any more, and he's been keeping a low profile lately. I guess the suspension woke him up and made him realize what he was doing."

"Yeah, I heard that, too. I certainly hope so."

She still looked worried. Kevin reached around with his free arm to take her hand, bringing it up his lips and gently kissing it.

"It'll be fine.", he said, "You'll see."

Smiling at the gesture, she turned and kissed him on the cheek, replying, "Yeah. It will be, with you."

The clouds rumbled as they rolled through the sky. Kevin looked up to study them.

"Is it going to rain again?", she asked.

"Yeah, but not soon. I think we'll make it to your house in plenty of time."

That reassured her as they continued on towards her house, softly conversing. Tara figured that her father probably hadn't gotten home yet and her mother was making dinner. Kevin's parents were still away on retreat. He could have driven her home, but it was just a fifteen minute stroll between their two houses, and it had become a daily routine for him to walk her home because they both cherished their time together so much. Today, they got going a little late, beginning to get dark when they started out, but he knew he could still get her home before full sunset. They kept strolling, discussing a lot of different things, something Tara really enjoyed. She loved the way Kevin respected her opinion and her intelligence, especially the way he actually valued her views about rather heady subjects such as world events or politics, and especially science, something no boy had ever done with her before. And Kevin was capable of talking about a lot of different subjects, some which she knew nothing about, but upon which Kevin was more than happy to expound without being pretentious, and then there were subjects she knew something about and which often led to a lively and fun exchange of ideas. But also, she was rather entertained, if not surprised, by his continued lack of knowledge on things feminine. It often brought out a good blush on his cheeks that she had fun egging on in him, but he took it good-naturedly. And of course they often returned to their first subject in common, chess, continuing the habit of playing out games orally. Getting the urge, he took that opportunity once again.

"Pawn to king four.", he started.

She looked askance at him, "Now?"

He shrugged and smiled, "Why not?"

She smirked back at him, "Okay. Um, pawn to queen bishop four."

He groaned, "You will never change!"

"You were expecting not to get wet when it rains?", she kidded, "Better chance of that than my not playing the Sicilian."

"Jeez! I was hoping! Okay, it wasn't rational, but anyway. Knight to king bishop three"

She giggled and responded, "Yeah, eventually I'll beat you through boredom, won't I? Pawn to queen three."

"Pawn to queen four."

"Pawn takes pawn."

"Knight takes pawn."

"Knight to king bishop three."

"Knight to queen bishop three."

"Pawn to queen rook three."

"Ugh, Najdorf variation. We've played this so many times."

"Yeah, but I got something different to try at move twelve."

Kevin thought ahead to the board situation where that move occured, wondering what her new move would be, "Okay, we'll see what you got."

They took their time now as the board position became harder to remember in their heads. They both heard the rumbling up above and noted the storm clouds again, and there were a couple of flashes of lightning that brought another frown to Tara's face, but Kevin reassured her they'd still get to her house in time. He wasn't too concerned about it raining once he got there. He could get one of her parents to take him back home. He was also perfectly happy staying around until it stopped raining. Thinking back on the game, he became oblivious to his surroundings, concentrating on his next move, so he did not notice the noise from down the gravel road until the SUV coming their way was nearly upon him. It was only when the vehicle swerved and the lights flashed in their faces that he jerked his head up to see the four-wheel drive monster coming right at them.

Shocked into action, he jumped at Tara and pushed her out of the way as the truck screeched to a stop only two inches from where they fell. Both of them were sprayed with gravel by the squealing off road tires, their skin stinging from the small stones smacking them. Angry, Kevin got up and helped Tara back to her feet, making sure she was all right. Then he turned towards the truck.

Furious, he yelled at it, "Hey! What the hell do you think you're doing?"

Tara clutched his arm, concern in her eyes, saying, "Don't push it, Kevin! It's Jason's truck."

He stared back at her in surprise, then at the truck again, "Oh, God. Now what?"

Tara looked up with trepidation as the door opened and Jason stepped out of the driver's seat, a drugged salacious look on his face, smiling like a freak. He held his right hand in a fist as if holding something, but there was nothing visible. He stumbled as he plopped down to the ground, laughing to himself.

"Oh, no.", Tara muttered, looking away in disgust, "He's drunk again."

"Great!", Kevin groaned, irritated at having to deal with this a second time, "So much for the sobriety!"

"Yeah, he thinks it's so cool he can 'hold his liquor'.", she whispered derisively, watching Jason come nearer, "He didn't do it this bad around me when we dated, but I knew. He's pulled some really stupid stuff when he gets this way, and sometimes he can't remember he even did it."

Kevin stared at Jason, murmuring, "That's a bad thing."

"Totally!", she replied testily.

Jason walked slowly towards them, deliberately putting one foot in front of the other as he tried to walk normally, but it was clear he was having trouble keeping his balance. He came up to Kevin and stared him down face to face with that silly grin, his pupils dilated. Kevin stood his ground. The basketball star looked even worse than when they met in the drugstore parking lot. Kevin didn't think him so much of a threat this time.

Jason grinned wider at him, then looked at Tara and sputtered, "Hah! And yoush... ...you... ...dumped me for this shrimp?"

She stared at him angrily, arms folded in front of her, "Jason, get back in the truck and go home! You don't need to be out here now in this condition! Go sleep it off!"

He guffawed at her, "Shleep it off? Sh... ...sure, baby! Jush... ...come'n home wid me... ...we'll shleep it off t'gether..."

He snickered, wiping drool off of his mouth with his shirt sleeve.

"Shove it, Jason!", Kevin angrily barked at him, "You are way too polluted, man! You don't even know what you're doing! Just go on home!"

Jason frowned at him, glaring like a loon.

"Looksh!, he slurred, "I jush wanna talk... ...to her... ...tha'sh all!... ...I jus' need..."

"I've got nothing to say to you, Jason!", she shouted at him, "Especially when you're this drunk!"

He took a step towards her, his face twisted, confused.

"I's... ...sorry... ...look... ...I jus' gotta know..."

Kevin moved over and put himself between Jason and his girlfriend.

"You better keep your distance, man.", he said in a warning tone.

Jason's face changed. He became irate, yelling, "Who da hell d'ya think y'are, nerd face? Ya think you can sh... ...steal my girl, 'n then order me 'round? _Screw you!_"

That was enough for Tara. She walked right up to him, still shouting, 'Okay, that's enough, Jason! Get back in your truck, now!"

She grabbed his arms and turned him so he faced his truck, then roughly pushed him towards it.

"Whoa!", he croaked as he stumbled, but he quickly regained his balance. His eyes burned with a sudden fury, and he retaliated by turning around and pushing her back hard.

Tara yelped and sprawled to the ground, Jason indignantly staring at her. Kevin yelled and took her place, pushing Jason away from her, screaming at him to get back in his truck. He couldn't do much against the basketball star's height and size. He shoved him as hard as he could, but Jason was only forced back a couple of steps each time Kevin stiff-armed him. Jason stared in outrage, blinking each time Kevin pushed him back, not believing the nerd would dare try this...

'O-...Okay!", he thought, the rage building inside, "He wants a fight? He'll get one!"

Jason's face wrenched into pure hatred as he brought his right hand up. The tire iron he hid slid down into his hand from inside his shirt sleeve. Then he lashed out, slinging it down on Kevin's head.

Kevin cried out and fell, holding his hands to his head, blood spilling out between his fingers. Tara screamed and immediately went to him, but Jason lunged forward and grabbed her arm. Pulling her up, he grabbed her forcefully and made her look at him. Tara cringed as Jason breathed heavily in her face, his fury still overwhelming his demeanor, the alcohol on his breath overpowering her. Unexpectedly, the anger drained away, and he stared vacantly at her, suddenly docile, his face all screwed up in confusion again.

"Why?", he asked softly, "Why?"

Tara froze, her eyes overcome with fear. But as he stood there asking "why", somehow her fear changed. She had never felt so scared, and at the same time so incredibly furious. It surprised her that she could feel both emotions so acutely, both battling to see which one would win out. Her stance shifted, changed, her own face twisting into rage. She reached back with her other hand, closing it into a fist, and slugged him as hard as she could. Shocked, Jason let go of her and staggered back, dropping the tire iron. He held his cheek and stared wide eyed, not believing she had tagged him like that. But then he snarled, and Tara's face went white, fearing what he was going to do. It was only later on that she remembered it at all. But at that moment all she could think of was how his eyes were so vacant, without soul, full of nothing but that uncontained fury and hatred he had. She wouldn't remember until later how angry she still was, or how she went after him again, swinging a wild haymaker and missing him, or how he dodged and reached out, grabbing her by the wrist and pulling her in. She screamed as he wrapped his arm around her, trying to squeeze her into submission, making her gasp for air, until Tara bent her head down and bit his forearm. Jason yowled, forced to release her. Tara turned and kicked him in the stomach. He lost his breath and staggered back, holding his belly and retching from the blow. She tried to kick him again, but he grabbed her leg and jerked her forward, twisting her leg, throwing her to the ground. Tara yowled as she flopped into the mud on her stomach. She tried to get up, but he swiftly reached down and grabbed by the hair, pulling her up. Screeching in pain, she swung at him with her fists, trying to get him to let go. Jason turned her around roughly and nailed her with a right cross to the face, splitting her lip. The blow stunned Tara, taking her completely off her feet, and she landed with a dull thud on her back. Paralyzed with the shock of the fall, Tara lay unmoving, staring wide-eyed, her breath ragged through the blood bubbles coming out of her mouth. Panting hard, still enraged, Jason gazed hotly at her. He stradled her waist, glaring pure malice, then reached down and grabbed her underneath her arms, wrenching her upright and shoving his face into hers.

"_You think you're so high and mighty_?" he screamed at her, spittle hitting her as his features contorted with madness, " _You think you rule the food chain? I'll show _you_ who rules the food chain_!"

She yelled again as he yanked her away from the road with a sharp jerk. Still in shock, she gasped as he took her to a nearby tree and slammed her up against it, crushing her body with his own as he forced his mouth onto hers. His intent clear, Tara came alive, terrified, fighting him furiously, first slamming at him with her fists, then scratching him and drawing blood. Roaring in pain, he stopped long enough to rear back and slug her again, stunning her of all remaining resistance. She cried out feebly, unable to fight further, flailing her arms uselessly. Jason reached up and ripped her top, taking a bra strap with part of the cloth, burying his face into her breast while she screamed at him with renewed energy to stop. He looked up at her as she wheezed thought the blood coming out of her nose. Jason leered at her, gurgling an ugly laugh.

He pulled her up again, making her cry out in pain as he raked her back across the tree bark, then lifted her up and slammed her back on the trunk once more. He reached down and ripped her skirt, then shoved his hand underneath and grabbed her underpants, tearing them and her underwear completely away. Tara gasped again and screamed even louder, somehow coming alive again and finding what little energy she had left, ferally squirming and fighting as hard as she could. He slapped her hard again, weakening her renewed resistance. Still, he was forced to use both hands to hold her down now as he wedged himself between her legs. He pressed his body into hers. A sharp explosion of light flashed around them as a lightning bolt nearby hit and drowned out Tara's screams with its thunder. The rain clouds suddenly burst, pouring down and drenching them both as he grabbed her leg and forced it up around his waist.

"_Is thish the way you's... ...like it_?", he yelled hoarsely at her, one hand fumbling with his pants, "_Is thish.. ...the way yoush... ...give it to him_?"

"_Jason! Please_!", she half-moaned, half-screamed, trying to turn her face away as he continued to bury his lips into hers, his loins pressing harder.

He paid no attention as he roared, "_Ish!.. ...he so much better, that_!..."

Jason's face disappeared from Tara's view. She heard him gurgle hard, felt the breath get knocked out of him when he was crumpled to one side by a form coming out of nowhere, tackling him down to the ground. Still in his grasp, she was suddenly jerked downward, slung down into the mud with a yelp as they fell, his grasp on her broken when both of them hit the dirt. Jason's head slammed hard into the gravel shoulder, his ears ringing with the noise of a freight train roaring by at sixty miles an hour. Dazed and gasping, he scrambled around, thrashing. Tara struggled shakily to get up as quickly as she could, and saw Kevin was there. His attack also forced him onto the ground. Now he got up on all fours, baring his teeth in a animal snarl at his drunken nemesis, blood streaming down his face, his breathing hard and fast, fueled by anger.

Tara cried out, her eyes staring in shock when she saw him.

"Oh my God, Kevin! Oh my God! You're hurt!"

Her initial movements were painful, but she ignored that completely as she went to him, cradling his head as he tried to stand. She reached down and ripped off a tattered piece of her skirt, holding it up to Kevin's forehead to wipe his forehead clean and stem the flow of blood. He didn't look at her, his attention only on her attacker. He glared at Jason's still form as he gradually stood with Tara's help, wincing as she continued to dab at the blood stemming from a long gash in his hairline. He finally turned to her, trying to collect his thoughts into coherence. Jason moved, moaning as he held his head. He looked around and saw Tara attending to Kevin. Anger ignited again, he struggled hard to rise. The tire iron was next to him. He grabbed it and stood back up, stumbling heavily towards them.

Tara's eyes widened and she screamed. Alarmed, Kevin lurched backwards trying to keep her behind him as Jason approached him wielding the tire iron menacingly. Trying to find something to protect himself, he looked around and saw a broken branch about an inch and half in diameter and a little less than a yard long lying a couple of feet away. It was no foil, but he knew it would do. Swiftly, he bent down and picked it up, then started pushing Tara further behind him, further away from Jason.

She cringed, pleading, "Kevin, no! He'll kill you!"

"It's okay, Tara!", Kevin said confidently, "I can handle this now. Go! Get help!"

Jason charged. Tara screamed again and backed away, but Kevin stood his ground. Yelling and swinging the tire iron wildly, Jason aimed at his head. This time, Kevin swiftly did a retreat step and circled to one side, wielding the branch, assuming a stance he used for saber practice. Jason dogged him, his face still twisted ugly and red, trying to overrun him through sheer force. He charged two more times, still whipping the iron around haphazardly, but he wasn't able to make a hit on the smaller boy. Kevin could see he was still having trouble maintaining his balance, and he used this to his advantage. As Jason started to charge a third time, he suddenly backed up in surprise when Kevin yelled and feinted at him with a lunge. He eyed the nerd suspiciously as Kevin began to dance back and forth, waving the stick up and down, taunting him. Growling, he spat another obscenity at him and charged again, swinging wildly. Kevin easily dodged away again, but Jason abruptly changed direction, slashing at him with a backhand attack, swinging it around and down. It caught Kevin in the right calf, causing him to stumble. He grimaced in pain as he went to one knee. Tara yelped in fear. Jason tried to follow up with a blow to split his head open, but Kevin unexpectedly rolled away to one side and was back on his feet in a defensive stance before Jason could connect with the blow. Kevin limped slightly, but it didn't appear to be serious. Jason roared again and charged, mounting a backhand attack as his first move. Kevin was poised, hoping for this. The move left Jason wide open and off balance.

Kevin lunged and punched Jason hard in the chest with the point of his stick, much like _Abo_ had done. Jason staggered back, wheezing, his breath crushed out of him by the attack. Before he could recover, Kevin executed an advanced lunge and slashed down on his neck. Snarling in pain, Jason dropped the tire iron and backed up more, grabbing his neck. Kevin lunged one more time, slashing down on him from the other direction. Struck across the forehead, Jason fell to the ground, his eyebrow cut and bleeding. Moaning, he sluggishly tried to get back up, but kept slipping in the mud. He screamed Tara's name, his mouth gurgling slightly from the blood in his mouth from where he bit his tongue. Kevin grabbed the branch with both hands and whipped it into Jason's skull as hard as he could. It snapped in two, but did the job as Jason fell hard into the mud and didn't move. Kevin grabbed the tire iron and threw it all the way across the road out of reach, then went back to Tara. She had watched the violence frozen from sheer fright, unable to leave, and now all she could do was stare hauntingly at him.

"I'm okay!", he said, reassuring her as they desperately wrapped their arms around each other in relief, Tara started sobbing openly as he repeated, "I'm okay! I'm okay!"

He looked back to see make sure Jason was down. The rain made it difficult, but it was clear he wasn't moving. The downpour fell hard, nealy drowning all sound out, though Kevin could still hear motor noise approaching. The darkness of the night was banished, forcing Kevin to cover his eyes. The whole area lit up brightly with headlights, piercing the driving rain. Screeching tires sprayed the gravel around them. Three boys ran up, two of them heading for Jason, quickly grabbing his arms and helping him up. He moaned in confusion and pain. Tara recognized them as two of his team mates, though she wasn't quite sure which ones. A third came right behind them and stopped cold in front of Tara and Kevin, a look of disbelief on his face.

It was Jeremy Wendell.

"Oh, my God.", he whispered, wide-eyed.

Someone else yelled. It was Jason. Fully awake again, his team mates struggled as he tried to bolt from their grasp, to free himself and charge Kevin again, roaring obscenities at him. Tara screamed, clutching at Kevin harder as he pushed her behind him once more, ready to take Jason on again. It wasn't necessary. Jeremy turned roughly and slammed himself up against his friend, keeping him in place and getting right into his face.

"Back off, man!", he yelled, "You can't do this!"

"Like hell I can't!", Jason roared back hoarsely, his head and face bleeding from the blows Kevin had given him, "I'll teach that bastard to steal what belongs to me!"

He lunged again, hard enough that it took all three of them to hold him down.

Jeremy gritted his teeth as he pushed back, grunting and straining as hard as he could, yelling in his face, "I said back off, man! Can't you see what you're doing? You've injured her! Damn it! You hurt her! Bad!"

He slapped Jason as hard as he could. Like a light switch turning off, Jason's rage disappeared, his face resgistering shock and confusion...

"Why'dyou do tha-. Wha?", he blubbered, trying to peer through the rain at Tara as it stinged his skin, "What'd I... ...What'cha... ...talking about?.. ...Whu..."

Taking advantage of his disorientation, Jeremy turned to the boys holding him, "Get him out of here! _Now_!"

They wasted no time as they jerked him away, dragging him roughly back to his truck. They shoved him into the passenger side and made sure he was going to stay there, then went back to their own wheels and sped away, peeling rubber as they did. Jeremy turned and stared forlornly at Tara and Kevin, a look of regret and pain on his face. He tried to speak but couldn't find the words.

He was only there a short time, every explanatory word dying on his lips, and in his mind. Yet, it semed like an eternity to him until he said the only thing he could think of saying, gazing vacantly at them as he yelled, "He's... ...drunk!... ...he's just drunk! okay?"

Jeremy ran off and got into the driver's seat of Jason's truck. The tires spun in the gravel, showering stones all over the place as he quickly followed the other vehicle, barreling down the road in the torrential downpour...

Everything became deathly quiet and still except for the rain, continuing to fall in stinging splashes. Tara held onto Kevin tightly, refusing to let go, her breath gasping. The rain was pelting them so hard now it actually hurt. It washed the blood from Kevin's scalp into his clothes, staining his T-shirt red over the upper half. He had to continuously blink to keep the rain out of his eyes. He was able to stand without assistance now, and he looked intensely at Tara, seeing the fear in her eyes. Traumatized, staring vacantly, open mouth rasping for air, her clothes ripped apart and barely staying on, she slowly let go of him and tried to rearrange her torn skirt. Failing that, she crossed her arms over her chest, trying to cover herself, and she cried again.

Kevin took the bloodied cloth from her hands and held it against his scalp and asked, "Are you okay? Are you hurt?"

She stared back at him, mute. But the terror and agony in her eyes told him what he needed to know. That look seared him to his soul, one he wouldn't forget for the rest of his life. All she could do was shake her head briefly, before collapsing into his arms again, breaking down and sobbing uncontrollably. He did what he had to do, just holding on to her as hard as he could, comforting her. The bleeding in his scalp had slowed down to a trickle. As she released her emotions into his shoulder, he simply stood there, holding her, stroking her mud splattered, soggy hair, soothing her with his voice...

"It's okay, now", he said softly, "It's okay. I'm here. It's okay. It's okay."

He kept repeating it for a long while, or so it seemed. In time, she was able to calm down enough to stand on her own again. She smothered her sniffling to a more controllable level. then Kevin pulled back and held her by the shoulders, making her look at him.

"Tara!", he said firmly, "We've got to get out of the rain. My house is still closer. I'll take you back there. Okay?"

Her face still wrenched in pain, she nodded, understanding. He looked around and found her windbreaker and covered her with it. Then he turned and quickly guided her back down the road to his house, still limping as he kept his arms around her shoulders to support her.

* * *

The SUV's engine complained shrilly as Jeremy slammed the gas pedal all the way down. All he could think of then was how he had to get his best friend as far away as possible from this whole disaster before he woke up enough again to cause any more trouble. Jason was holding his head in his hands, trying to rub the pain away as much as possible, muttering obscenities and wiping his forehead, trying to keep the water and blood dripping out of his soaked hair from getting into his eyes. He stared through the windshield, trying to see where they were going. At one point he woke up enough to get his bearings, seeing it was somewhere Tara was not. His bloodshot eyes stared insanely at his best friend.

"Where is she?", he shouted at him, "Where's Tara? I have to go get her!"

"Shut up, Jason!", Jeremy spat back at him, "You don't have to go get anybody right now! You need to go home and get over this! _God!_ You are _so_ in trouble this time!..."

"I'sh got to get her!... ...Damn!... ...nerd!... ...I got to..."

He began to gag, unable to speak further. He leaned forward and retched hard enough to vomit onto the dash and floor of the truck. Jeremy turned his head in disgust but kept driving the truck down the gravel road, heading back to town and Jason's house.

"Jer!", Jason croaked through his spittle, "What's going on? Where's Tara?"

Angrily, Jeremy yelled back at him, "Don't you know, you damned idiot? After what you did to her, do you think she'll have anything to do with you now?"

"What?", he yelled back at him, "what'sh... ...what's are yoush... ...saying?..."

His head began to bob up and down with the bumps the truck went through over the road, the nausea overtaking him. He slowly leaned forward and laid his head onto the dash.

"Jason!", Jeremy yelled, turning his attention to the road, "Think, man! You've got to remember! You've got to..."

He looked over at his friend again and saw Jason passed out, his face pressed up against the dashboard covered in his vomit, the blood from his forehead running onto it. Enraged, Jeremy turned his eyes back to the road and cursed at him, slamming his fist into the dashboard, and then cursed himself for putting up with this crap as the SUV screamed down the road scattering gravel to either side.

* * *

Running through the rain, Kevin held on tightly to Tara as they climbed the steps up to his house onto the porch. She stood by the front door shivering, her face still drawn tight in terror. Kevin fumbled for his keys as quickly as he could, silently berating himself for taking so long to get the door open. Finally, he found the right one, slipped it in, and turned the lock, letting them into the house. He guided her in and sat her down in the nearest chair in the foyer. She shivered hard, looking like the proverbial drowned rat, still breathing with ragged breaths. She was trying to keep from crying, but couldn't do it. Fortunately, her drenched hair and face hid her tears so well that Kevin hadn't immediately noticed.

"Wait here.", he said, "I'll be back."

She nodded curtly and wrapped the windbreaker tighter around herself, groaning and shaking uncontrollably. Kevin tried the light switch and flicked it on, starting up the stairs, then lurched to a stop when it remained dark. Mutely, he cursed the storm which he now realized had knocked out the power to the house. Being more careful, he limped quickly up the stairs. He wasn't gone for more than ten seconds when he showed up with a large bath towel and started to dry her hair and head. Slowly, she took over for him and began to wring out the darkened blonde locks, now looking almost brunette from the moisture and dirt. Thankfully, the house was still heated from natural gas and the warmth did begin to melt away a little of the chill in her bones. The darkness hampered things, but there was still enough light coming in from an outside street light. Kevin wondered why it still had power and the house didn't. But it gave off sufficient light. That's when Kevin noticed the tears...

"You're still crying.", he said, concerned, "Are you okay? Are you hurt anywhere?"

Surprising him, her eyes flashed sudden anger at the question.

"No, I'm not all right! Kevin!", she retorted, "You! You could have been killed! Jason is twice your size!"

He frowned at her unexpected attack, replying, "And what was I supposed to do? Just sit there and let him assault you like that?"

As quickly as it came on, her distemper fled, and she regretted her outburst.

"No, I...", she moaned, "I'm sorry, Kevin. I was so scared!"

She broke down again, sobbing heavily. Kevin put his arms around her again and gently shushed her.

"It's okay, Tara, it's okay.", he whispered, "You have nothing to be sorry for. He was too drunk to do anything to threaten me. He only got me the first time because I wasn't expecting it. After that, I was ready for him. You saw that."

She started to argue again, but stopped, realizing there really was no way he would have just stood by and done nothing, and that he had indeed handled Jason afterwards. Pulling back to face him, she reached up to Kevin's forehead and looked at the large raw gash that stretched across his hairline. It didn't bleed anymore, having been washed out from the rain, but Tara was worried because she thought she could see bone underneath.

"We' ve got to get you to the hospital.", she said, "You're going to need stitches."

"We will.", he assured her, "We will. Mom and Dad are coming back from their retreat. They should be here in a couple of hours. Chances are good they'll probably stitch me up right here."

"Can it wait that long?"

"Yeah. I'll keep it cleaned out with antiseptic in the meantime. I know what to do for it. But I want you taken care of first."

"Kevin, I'm fine.", she protested softly.

"No, you're not!", he contradicted bitterly, though his anger was not directed at her.

Tara opened her mouth to debate the point, but said nothing when she realized what he meant. Instead she looked down at her ruined outfit. The top had nearly been torn off, her bra ripped apart, the left strap broken off. She had covered up as best she could, but her left breast was still almost completely exposed. Her skirt was ripped to shreds, also barely covering her. Both her underpants and underwear were gone, leaving her naked underneath. Her lip was split and swelling heavily now. Her back and arms were scored with several small lacerations and bruises, though they had stopped bleeding. Kevin could see she was going to have a black eye, and she was completely splattered with mud and gunk from where she had been thrown down onto the road surface and the muddy shoulder. Tara concentrated on getting herself together, finally becoming calmer, breathing easier, reassured by Kevin being there and holding her.

Looking more relaxed, she said, "I will be all right, Kevin, really. I just need to clean up, that's all."

"Yeah, okay.", he said, nodding, "I"ve got some things you can change into. The bathroom's upstairs on the right."

"That's fine."

"Okay, let me help you."

"I'm fine.", she said more firmly, trying to gain some sense of control back.

"But..."

She grimaced, "Geez, Kev. I'm not some porcelain doll. I don't break that easily. You're the one that's wobbling around from the beating he gave you."

She slowly stood up, gently pushing away his hand from around her waist when he still tried to help. But she hesitated a moment and took it back, looking at it a good while. Raising it to her lips, she softly kissed it and rubbed it in both her hands. She smiled before letting it go.

"Not that I don't appreciate it, you know.", she added softly.

He smiled back, "I know. But I still think you're a doll."

She snorted in strained laughter as she slowly started up the stairs, "Huh! Flatterer!"

"Every chance I get, girl. Every chance I get.", he whispered.

She gazed at him, his eyes confirming to her how serious he was despite the joke he just made.

They moved at a slow pace, eventually making it to the top. Once there, she waited while he slipped into his room and came back with a pair of jogging shorts he used for his fencing practice and his Dartmouth sweat shirt. They would be a little tight on her, but would do. In the bathroom he found a candle that was kept up there for storm blackouts and he put it on the counter, lighting it with the matches that were in a drawer. A wan light came up from it. It was still very dark, but it was enough to see by. He placed the clothes on the counter next to the sink and then let her inside.

"Take your time. I'll be here if you need me."

"I know."

He gently closed the door. For a moment Tara didn't move, staring at the door in consternation, still trying to resolve the night's events, and finding no way to do it. The insanity of it was too much to comprehend. The memories, savagely fresh in her mind, came down brutally into her consciousness again, just like the rain continued to come down heavily, pounding the roof harder and harder in a steady drum roll as lightning flashed through the one small window that peered into the room, burning her outline into the wallpaper in between the wall pictures of sailing ships used to decorate the bathroom with a seascape theme. With Kevin now gone, she no longer felt the need to hold back so much. Grasping the hand towel next to the sink, she sat down on the toilet seat and sobbed heavily into the terry fabric. She hoped Kevin did not hear her crying, hoping the rain would still be loud enough to drown it out. She didn't want to worry him further. The thunder was still filtering through the window and it helped masked her sobs and pain from projecting through the door. She had thought she was holding it together so well. But she realized just how badly she had been scared, and it stung her to the very center of her being.

She cried for several minutes before getting control once more. Steeling herself, she turned to the shower and opened up the faucets, flipping the lever to start the showerhead. Steam soon filled the room, obscuring the mirror's surface as she tossed off the windbreaker, slowly stripped off the remnants of her outfit, and stepped into the tub, letting the water run over her face and down her body. She gasped momentarily when the water hit her split lip, but that soon passed. She sighed with relief.

'I'm lucky to have hot water.', she thought idly, 'Since they use gas to heat the house.'

The shower helped washed her ruined mascara away and soothed her swollen lip and face after the initial stinging. The warmth of the water also had a lulling and comforting effect and she quickly felt much more relaxed, more confident of being able to deal with everything that had happened tonight. Looking at the soap dish, she found a bar there and scrubbed up a good lather over her skin. There was a clean wash cloth already on the towel rack and she made sure to scrub herself wherever she could find dirt. She worked at it steadily and briskly, but then abruptly stopped, realizing she was scrubbing much too hard wherever Jason had touched her, and she found this disturbing. She took a deep breath, and slowed down, going back over her skin and making sure all the dirt was gone and her fingernails were clean.

Next to the soap dish there was a bottle of generic shampoo. Picking it up, she frowned. 'Is this what Kevin uses?', she thought, 'I'm so going to have to educate that boy.' She was very particular about her hair care. Normally she wouldn't have touched this with a ten foot pole. But she desperately needed something, so she lathered it in and washed her hair thoroughly, rinsing it well and then shut off the faucets.

She slid the shower curtain aside and stepped out of the tub, being careful to avoid some of the water that had leaked out onto the tile floor. She hadn't quite closed the shower curtain all the way, and the water that leaked past had managed to cover a good part of the floor up to the door. She thought about cleaning it up, but that was low on her list of priorities right then. She found an oversized beach towel on the rack and quickly dried herself off, then she wrapped her hair with the towel and wrung it out good, laughing a bit because for some reason it reminded her of Kim. Kim was also the towel off type, but Tara could remember her always carrying that hair dryer around with her when she went off on her missions. She always wondered what she used it for.

There was a knock on the door and Kevin said, "You doing okay?"

She replied, "Yeah, almost dressed. I'll be out in a sec."

Unwrapping her hair from the towel, she reached down to grab the sweat shirt and pull it on so she could wrap her hair back up. The shampoo had indeed dried it out a bit too much, and it filled out around her head in a soft cloud. She let it be as she knew she could condition it later when she got home. The rain had slowed down and was now softly thrumming the roof. The lightning sounded far away, but one bolt hit close to the old farm house and seared the bathroom in blinding light, followed immediately by a thunderclap that literally bounced the pictures around on the wall from where they hung. Shocked by the explosive sound, she screamed and slipped in the water on the floor, dropping the bath towel onto the toilet seat and knocking a porcelain tissue holder next to the sink off the counter. It broke with a loud crash as Tara grabbed the edge of the counter to keep her balance.

"Tara! Are you all right?", yelled Kevin as the door burst open.

He stormed in to see if she was hurt. Wide-eyed, Tara gasped, folding her right arm across her chest and her other arm below, turning slightly away from him. Kevin's face went bone white and he scrambled backwards to leave, but slipped on the water on the floor, falling onto his back.

"Oh, God! Tara! I'm so sorry! I thought you said you were dressed!"

Horrified at his intrusion, he could only think, 'I have to leave! Leave! No! Don't look! I have to go! I have... ...I have to...'

He couldn't. He was frozen, trying to avert his eyes, and failing. His next thoughts overwhelmed him, ''_God in heaven! I've never seen her so beautiful_'

All he could do was blink his eyes, fixed in place, unable to move. He felt shame seeing her this way, expecting this vision to suddenly disappear at any moment, waiting for her to castigate him for his intrusion, to see her grab the towel and cover herself.

Instead he was amazed to find Tara remaining completely still. Her eyes were wide and staring at first, but her face changed, the surprise leaving it, replaced by... ...what? Wonder?

Tara was just as overwhelmed as Kevin, but not at his seeing her like this. Instead, She was in awe of how he was looking at her, not with anything like lust but with something like, almost like worship, or was it...

...love?...

...yes...

She had always been sure he loved her, but for the first time it shone from his eyes like intense starlight, She could see it so clearly. It was like a beacon.

This boy who risked his life to help her, who even now, like this, did not look at her like a trophy to be taken and conquered. She was seeing him completely exposed and open for the first time.

That made it so ironic to her. He was actually more naked that she was, totally transparent, and what she saw told her that everything she had ever wanted was right here before her... ...in him. Her mouth opened slightly on an otherwise still face. As it did, it seemed to soften her features entirely into velvet. Slowly, she faced him, her arms moving to her sides. Her eyes never blinking or moving from his.

In the semi-darkness of the bathroom, Kevin saw her transform into a silver statue, limned in the soft rays of the full moon coming through the small window, her skin made of alabaster perfection that shone with the soft matte sheen of a warm sepia print, her golden hair a halo of magnificent light that framed her body. The thought somehow came to his mind that it made the Venus de Milo look like the work of a crude and boorish amateur. The weak candlelight only heightened the effect, playing off her body and accentuating her curves so intensely, the shadows only deepening the mystery despite the fact there was nothing hidden.

'_Oh, my God.', _he thought,_ 'Does she want want me to... ...to do it_?', and his mind exploded with wild thoughts, his hormones suddenly rushing through his body, making it respond. His breathing became course. His impulses stampeded through him in an incoherent manner, and he tried to make sense of it as he fought as hard as he could to control the rage of need that roared within him now, the urges challenging him to accept what her eyes now told him she wanted to give him, and his mind desperately holding those urges at bay while he tried to think of a way to make sure he did this right, or if he should, or could. He couldn't speak. What words would suffice? There were no words. There was no language that could bring enough communication to suffice... ...except...

Very slowly, Kevin got up from the floor, remaining still. His eyes focused on nothing except her own. He took a step forward, his arms coming up slowly. Tara did not move, waiting.

"Pawn to queen four.", he whispered.

She smiled slightly, her eyes melting into his as she replied just as softly, "Pawn to queen four."

He stepped towards her again, his hands now reaching her waist.

"Pawn to queen bishop four."

A look of longing filled her face as he came nearer. Her head tilted to one side, their lips approaching one another. Just as they met, she answered him in a voice that surprised her from the pure animal desire that exuded from it.

"I resign."

Kevin embraced her fully, kissing her like he had never kissed her before, and Tara responded even more passionately, sliding her hands up and down his back as he tenderly carressed her down to the small of her spine. They reveled in that touch forever, not wanting to ever divide themselves again from each other. Over and over again, their lips melded softly, intensely. But ever so slowly, unexpectedly, Kevin did what he had to do, slowly disengaging himself, gently, deliberately, every movement showing how much he absolutely did not want to do it. As their lips slowly came apart, both of them breathing so deep, their eyes locked for long moments before he started to bend down on one knee, his hands gradually trailing down to the small of her back as he did, his lips barely touching, kissing the skin between her breasts and down her stomach. She gasped and closed her eyes, wondering what was next. His hands left her and reached down, then he just as slowly stood back up and faced her, his arms still underneath hers, his body still touching hers. Her breathing was still deep, still anticipating what would come.

And she was stunned as he gently spread out the bath towel he had picked up, from where it fell onto the toilet seat, slowly wrapping it around her from behind. Folding it over and covering her breasts, he gingerly tucked it in just underneath her left arm and let it drape down to her knees.

The moment changed, she looked at him in surprise.

"I... ...I thought you wanted..."

Kevin's eyes flared, challenging her. He cupped her face with both hands and kissed her fiercely, then hugged her just as hard as he continued to kiss her softly on the nape of the neck.

"Ohhh.", he sighed almost inaudibly, seemingly in relief, "You better believe I want to."

In her arms, Tara could feel he meant it. He had changed clothes and cleaned up, wearing a another set of white t-shirt and shorts, and she noticed he wore nothing else. But she could also feel the ache and hard longing that ran so intensely through him. There was no mistaking the reaction of his body or how excited he was. It would be impossible for any girl who touched him to miss it. He pulled back slowly until he was facing her again, his hands holding her shoulders, his eyes capturing hers again.

Slowly shaking his head, he said, "Tara. Now's not the right time. I don't know when that will be. But we'll see."

Strangely, his face tensed up and his voice became constricted, "It's because I... ...I... ...You mean too much to me to do this the wrong way. It's gotta be right. Okay?"

Tara thought, 'He didn't say it.", but she knew he meant it.

Tara gazed at him, her eyes glistening, and a tear on her cheek reflected the soft candlelight. Slowly, she nodded.

"I understand, Kevin. It's okay.", she said very gently and low, "I'll be okay. I'll be okay because you're here to make it okay."

She reached up and gently touched the bandage he had placed over the laceration. Looking back into his eyes, she smiled again.

"I'm just glad you're not badly hurt."

Time stood still again as they drank an endless pool of emotion from each other's eyes. He caressed her face as she held on to him. Neither knew how long it was before Tara spoke again.

Her voice small, she said "Kevin, you... ...you really were my shining chess knight out there. You know that?"

He tried to reply calmly, but somehow his tongue tangled up in his response. With a small wry grin on his face, he stuttered, "Yeah, I guess. But you know... ...you know that this... ...this chess knight will make the sacrifice any time... ...to save and protect his queen."

She quietly laughed and said, "So long as he stays around long enough to become my king, okay?"

He chuckled, finally relaxing, "That's a promise."

The moment lightened, they smiled at each other longingly, not wanting to let go. But finally...

"Okay, then.", Kevin said as he released her, "I'll leave you to get dressed. I've got to go down and make some phone calls. I'm calling your parents to come over. Then I'll make you something to eat."

Tara nodded.

"It's a deal, Guberman.", she said softly.

He started to turn away when she suddenly caught hold of him again, embracing him once more.

As he looked back at her, the question in his eyes, she whispered, "The queen wishes to reward her loyal knight for his valor."

She held on to him even tighter, kissing him longingly and with such gentleness in her touch. At the end, their lips gradually unlocked, quivering slightly, still aching not to separate at all.

He slowly grinned, saying, "Always at your service, my queen."

Letting go once more, Kevin left and closed the door quietly behind him. The rain had stopped. Completely still, Tara stared at the closed entryway, and the flood of emotion overcame her again. She cried again, this time in relief, the tears easily rolling down her face. She had no qualms about what she did. She would have given herself to him even with what had happened earlier. She wanted to. But the remarkable thing was that she never had a boy react that way to her before. Boys simply didn't refuse anything that someone with her physique offered.

She thought back to all the rumors about her and Jason, mainly the ones that she had 'done' it with him. It had particularly galled her that most of the school believed his locker room bravado simply because he was who he was, the star jock who could have any girl he wanted. Of course, Kevin had heard the rumors too, and Jason had made a point of implying it, first at the cheer squad party last year, and at times when they passed by each other in the hallways when he would make some snarky remark to him about how good it was to 'have had' her. The subject only came up once between them, and Tara had strongly reassured him there was no truth to it. Kevin replied fervantly that he believed her fully, saying he trusted her completely, but she could tell he wasn't totally convinced. It worried her at first, but then something wonderful happened. After Bonnie tried to rub it in one time, almost provoking Tara to punch her out, Kevin was able to calm her down. He said he believed her, but he then said that even if she had done it, it was none of his business and didn't have any relation to them now. She was amazed that it didn't matter to him one single bit. It made absolutely no difference whatsoever to him...

And the truth was that she hadn't. Tonight, he would have been her first.

She smiled through her tears and whispered to the door, "I love you too, Kevin."

* * *

The rain hammered down onto the park in the sheer darkness in a vicious and steady stream. On the road, a car was slowly trying to make its way over the gravel, hesitant as it rolled along, the wipers flashing back and forth at full speed. A bolt of lightning flashed across the sky allowing the driver to get a glimpse of the rock strewn street, and he was able to speed up a little and stay on track. That single flash did not let him see the lone figure sitting up against the large bole of an oak tree, her legs drawn up, clutching something hard to her chest.

Bonnie's eyes stared vacantly across the road, seeing nothing. Her hair was drenched, the perm she had put on two days before now ruined. Her jogging outfit was heavily muddied and stained beyond recovery. Small rivulets of rain ran in the filth beside her, her socks sodden with the dirty water from the puddle in which her shoes were immersed. She gave none of it any notice. All she could do was stare. Tears rolled down her face, mixing in with the rain that drenched her even despite the cover from the oak tree. She just sat there, sobbing silently, her emotions and sense of direction totally in disarray.

'It was supposed to be so easy', she thought. She had thought the nerd would start the fight, Jason would defend himself, and Tara would see him for the jerk he really is. But she was surprised when Jason showed up drunk. Still, she thought he would pull it off. Then...

Despite the sudden revulsion she felt at what followed, she couldn't stop recording. Her face white with fear, fingers frozen in indecision, and eyes wide open, she kept the camera trained on the entire incident. She didn't stop until Kevin and Tara had left. Then she shut the camera off and stood there in the torrential downpour, her world suddenly turned upside down.

Despite their differences, Bonnie still thought of herself as Tara's friend. She cared about her, was worried about her being with the wrong people. But now, she realized she was the one who was wrong, wrong about Jason, and it almost got Tara r-"

She couldn't even say the word to herself, and it was all her fault. She slid down the bole of the tree, and cried harder. She had always been so sure of what she was doing, always in command of herself. She thought she knew how the world was, the way people were. She thought she knew how one had to navigate life to get the best things and the best people on your side, how to stay cool.

For the first time in her life, Bonnie Rockwaller had to face the prospect she had been completely wrong.

**Lives are changed forever now. The fallout is just beginning. But there is light at the end of the tunnel as well**.

**The next chapter should be out in a few days.**


	12. Chapter 11

**Author's Note: The queen and her knight are not quite out of danger. The final moves are in motion. But even after the enemy king is defeated, there is more to come.**

**Chapter Eleven**

**The Endgame Begins**

Tara sat quietly in the easy chair with her legs tucked up underneath her, gingerly sipping the mug of hot tomato basil soup Kevin had heated up for her. It tended to sting her split lip, making her jerk, so she made sure to hold it carefully in both hands. She didn't want to spill any of it. She was immensely more relaxed now. Kevin's clothes fit her well enough and the blanket he had thrown over her shoulders made her feel toasty, letting her muscles unwind with the warmth. The lights had since come back on now that the storm was over and she was fully enjoying the small space heater Kevin had set up near to her.

She heard him in the next room talking on the phone to his parents, explaining what had happened. From the sound of his side of the conversation, she could easily sense how alarmed they were, but he seemed to be doing a good job of assuaging their fears, much as he had done with her parents who he called first. Interestingly, his parents seemed more alarmed than hers, though she still could feel her mother's and father's intense agitation coming through the phone during that conversation. Of course, Kevin had to let Tara's mom talk to her right then, so she could make completely sure her daughter was all right. She did seem less frantic after Tara explained what happened and how Kevin had saved her. Then her mother told her they would be right over, and in fact were due any minute. Right after he called them, Kevin also phoned one of his chess club buddies whose father was on the police force. He was on the way, too. Now he came back into the room just as he was finishing talking with his mother...

"...yeah, Mom... ...yeah... ...No, no, no, Mom! There's no need for an ambulance!... ...You'll see when you get here... ...Mom!... ...Mom, trust me on this, okay? It's under control... ...yeah... ...okay... ...I'll see you then... ...love you, too, Mom. See you when you get here... ...Bye."

He hung up the phone in exasperation, "'Rents!"

"Tell me about it.", she muttered sourly, "By the way, did you hear Daddy do anything when you first talked to him?"

"Not when I first talked to him. ', he drawled out, "Your mother actually did most of the talking after I told him."

"So I gathered."

"Anyway, he was, er, rather agitated. I heard a lot of crashing sounds."

Tara grimaced.

"No need to finish. I've got a pretty good idea of how he reacted."

As if on cue, the doorbell rang, The door immediately opened up as Tara's parents didn't wait for anyone to answer, rushing into the house to find their daughter. Tara calmly put the soup down on the end table by the chair and got up just as her mother gathered into her arms and held her in death grip, crying quietly. Her father was right behind and gathered them both in his huge arms.

"I'm okay, Mom.", she said soothingly, trying to put them at ease, "I'm okay."

Her mother pulled back to look at her and anguish filled her eyes.

"Oh my God! Tara! Your face!"

Tara smiled as best she could, "It'll heal, Mom. Kevin says there shouldn't be any permanent damage. It's not that bad."

"But your lip! Do you need stitches?"

"He doesn't think so."

Kevin added, "It's looks a lot worse than it really is, Mrs. Monroe. There's just a lot of swelling right now. She just needs to keep some ice on it for the next day or so. It'll go down quickly."

Mark Monroe said nothing, staring at his daughter's face with a stony expression for a long time before he turned to Kevin, his eyes on fire.

"Where is he, Kevin?", he asked softly.

Kevin steeled himself, expecting he would respond this way. Tara had warned him what his reaction might be. In confirmation, he could see her look up in fear, tense in her mother's arms.

"That's what I'm about to find out, sir.", he replied firmly.

"That's not quick enough.", her father mouthed hotly, heading for the door, "I'll find him, and when I do..."

Kevin moved in quickly and grabbed the big man's arm.

"Whoa, there! Mr. M! Please! Don't do this!"

He shook off Kevin's hand and kept going.

"I want his hide! Now!"

"Mark! No!" Jill yelled as Tara gasped, her eyes wide open.

"_No_!", he shouted as he reached for the door knob, "_He's going to pay_!"

"And how are you going to make that happen?", she pleaded, "by getting yourself into trouble?"

He turned back to her.

"I can't let this go!", he shouted angrily, "There has to be justice!"

"And I have it covered, sir!", Kevin interjected desperately, reaching out again and grabbing his arm again, only firmer, "Trust me! He will answer for this!"

Mark Monroe hesitated, staring hard at the boy as he stood at the threshold, the rage in his eyes challenging Kevin to keep him from leaving, but Kevin didn't back down.

Jill Monroe quickly came over and reached out to him, "Calm down, Mark! Please! This isn't going to help."

"She's right, sir.", Kevin added, "Besides, I'll be able to take care of this in just a few minutes, legally."

The older man was still wound up so tight, ready to blast right out the door, but having both Kevin and Jill there, keeping him from leaving, then seeing how distressed his daughter was looking, he hesitated. He took a deep breath, his face still twisted with rage, but gradually he let it go as he kept gazing at Tara, seeing how his anger was affecting her and not liking it. That decided him and he finally relaxed, looking back at Kevin with a demanding frown.

"Okay, son.", he said in a low voice, "Okay. How are you going to do that?"

"I called in a favor, a big one.", Kevin replied, smiling when he looked confused, "Which should be appearing any second now."

The door bell rang.

"Good timing." Kevin said, grinning wider.

He turned and answered it. Standing there was his old chess buddy Dave Ponder and an older man. Kevin put a hand out to greet his schoolmate.

"Hey, Dave. How's it going?"

Dave smiled and replied, "Doing okay, Kevin, doing okay."

Kevin became somber as he shook the hand of the man standing next to him.

"I want to thank you, sir, for doing this."

The older man smiled and patted him on the shoulder, "It's no trouble, Kevin. It's my job. And besides, after the way you tutored Dave through algebra and saved him from failing, I'm only too glad to help."

Kevin grinned again, "I appreciate that, sir. Did you find him?"

"No problem. A squad car sighted him on the way home. The truck pulled into his parents' residence and they identified two teenage boys getting out, one of them helping the other."

"That had to be Jeremy helping him inside."

"So we figured. What we need to do now is get the complaint filed formally so we can go pick him up."

Mark Monroe was looking on, following the conversation, coming to understand they were talking about Jason. He asked, "I'm sorry, sir, but you are...?"

The man turned to him, "You must be Mr. Monroe. Kevin said you would be here when I arrived. I apologize, sir. I should have introduced myself earlier. I'm Detective Stan Ponder, Middleton Police Department. This is my son Dave. Kevin here called me earlier and explained what had happened and asked me to help out. I am only too happy to do so, and I want to express how very, very sorry I am that your daughter suffered such a traumatic attack."

Mark nodded as he shook the detective's hand, 'Thank you, thank you very much, Detective. I do appreciate your coming and helping us. But what now? How do we get this SOB off the street?"

"I need you and your daughter to come down to the police station so we can make out the initial report. It won't take that long. Then we can send the squad car out for him within an hour. As drunk as he apparently is, he's not going anywhere."

Tara's father nodded, looking more relieved, "Good. Good. Okay. Jill, Tara, let's get your things and we'll go down..."

Tara stood frozen in place, a scared look taking over her face.

"No. No, Dad.", she murmured as she sat back down and hugged the blanket around herself again.

He looked at her, perplexed, "What? Tara, we have to go and file the report. I don't want him getting away before he can be arrested."

"No, Daddy!", she said more forcefully, "Not right now! I can't! Not right now. Please, let me get some rest. We can do this in the morning."

"But Tara!"

Jill put a hand on his shoulder and said, "Let her be, Mark. She's been through enough."

She looked to Dave's father, "Is there any problem with waiting to do this until the morning?"

Detective Ponder pursed his lips for a moment, then nodded, "I don't think so. I looked at his file. He's been brought in for disorderly conduct and public intoxication a couple of times. He was always so plastered it took him at least half a day to come out of it, then was let go. He never was caught driving under the influence."

"Isn't there a danger of him running?"

"If that was true, I think he would have done it already, and he's so plastered right now I don't think he's going anywhere at least for tonight. But more importantly, the main reason I'm not worried about him running is that we know him pretty well, and he's so smug and conceited he won't think there's any problem his father can't get him out of. But I can keep a squad car in the area to keep tabs on him just in case."

Mark Monroe frowned at him, asking, "Could his father get him off?..."

Detective Ponder smiled back confidently, "From what Kevin told me, and what I see here already... ...No chance in hell."

Jill nodded grimly, satisfied with that and replying, "Good."

Turning back to Mark, she said firmly, "Then we'll wait until first thing in the morning."

Looking at her daughter, she asked, "Honey?"

Tara looked up and nodded somberly as she pulled the blanket around her tighter, and said, "I still have school."

Her father frowned again, even more confused, saying, "But baby, I think we have good reason to keep you home."

"No, Dad. I want to go."

Flabbergasted, his eyebrows scrunched together as he stared at her, "But why? If you're too tired to go to the station tonight, why go to school?"

"Mark.", Jill interrupted again, "I think she just doesn't want this to break her routine."

"But."

"Honey, please.", she said, "She needs to do it this way. Let her."

He stared at her, confused, and finally sighed in resignation as he nodded his agreement wordlessly.

"It's a little unusual, but it won't be a problem on my end, Mr. Monroe.", added the detective as he observed, "I can bring the paper work down to the school first thing in the morning. We can get the school officials involved at the same time so they can take the appropriate actions for their part."

Tara's father looked back at him, then at his wife. He was still worried as he replied, "Okay. We'll do it this way, for her."

Detective Ponder smiled and nodded, "Good. I'll get things prepared and see you at the principal's office in the morning."

He held out his hand again to Tara's parents, shaking both of theirs and again expressing his condolences, before turning to leave. At the door he smiled at Kevin once more and shook his hand again.

"You did real good here, young man. You should be proud."

Kevin responded with an embarrassed smirk, saying, "Uh, thank you, sir, thanks."

Dave followed his father out the door and Kevin high fived him, saying, "And thank you, man. I owe you one."

Dave just shook his head and smiled, "No way. Just paying you back. See you."

"You bet.", Kevin replied warmly, shutting the door slowly behind them as they left.

Jill started attending to her daughter, wrapping the blanket around her better as the Monroes made ready to leave. It was only a minute later when they heard the BMW pull up into the driveway and Kevin's parents soon walked in briskly, looking just as concerned as Tara's parents had. They immediately went to Kevin and hugged him close, making sure he was all right. He rapidly reassured them everything was okay and then Donna Warren went directly to Tara and enclosed her in her arms, murmuring her support as tenderly as she could, making sure she was okay as Philip Guberman shook hands and talked with Tara's father. Then Donna turned and hugged Jill Monroe as well. Kevin went into a detailed explanation of what had happened since he talked to them on the phone, telling them about the arrival of Detective Ponder and the plans to make the report in the morning.

Philip Guberman nodded in agreement, 'Good, Kevin, good. You did the right thing. But Tara's going to need an examination."

"I'm doing that right now, Philip.", replied his wife as she meticulously looked Tara's face over and calmly palpated her limbs and torso, "I'll get the camera and take the pictures."

"Will that be enough?", asked Jill.

Donna nodded, "With my affidavit, yes. This should be all we need as evidence of the attack since this was as far as the assault went."

"Thank God for that.", muttered Tara's father.

Dr. Guberman nodded in agreement, then looked steadily at his son.

"What about you, Kevin? How bad is that laceration?"

He approached him, wanting a closer look, but Kevin tried to wave him off as he came closer.

"Wait, Dad. It's not that bad. It might need a couple of stitches."

"You're limping!", cried Donna.

"It's alright, Mom!", Kevin protested.

His father wouldn't brook any interference and slapped his hands away. Kevin cringed as his father gently pulled off the bandage and gaped in surprise at the wound underneath. Donna Warren also gasped when she saw it.

"Oh my God! Kevin. That's a huge laceration! This is a lot worse than you said it was!", she cried out.

Kevin rolled his eyes a little, "Mom, it's not that bad! I feel fine, really. I got a little headache, that's all."

His father quickly straightened him up and ordered, "Look at me!

"Dad!"

"Look! At! Me!"

Kevin sighed in defeat and obeyed as his father pulled out a small light and shined it in both eyes. He went through the entire neurological exam, even going so far as doing deep tendon reflex and gait testing. When his father was satisfied, he looked back up at the laceration and perused it closely.

"That's going to need about a dozen stitches, son, not a couple."

"Okay, dad. Can we do it later?"

"Absolutely not!", his father retorted firmly, "You still have to go to the hospital and get your head x-rayed for a possible subdural bleed. That boy must have really rung your bells to get nasty cut like that! And what about your leg?"

"It's only a bruise! And I really don't need any x-rays!"

"Don't contradict me, young man! You're going!"

"Dad!"

His dad eyed him sharply, not about to brook any further disobedience on this point. Kevin rolled his eyes again and said submissively, "Okay."

That issue decided, Mark Monroe cleared his throat.

"We should be going, too. We're going to have be at the school early."

"If you don't mind, Mark.", said Kevin's father, "Donna and I think we should come with you. We'll bring the photographs and back up your story. We can also testify professionally to her injuries."

Tara's father smiled warmly, "I'd appreciate that, Philip. I'll bet it'll help the school officials to act quicker with all four of us there."

"I'm sure it will. We'll be ready."

Mark Monroe turned back to his daughter, "Are you sure about this? About doing it this way?"

"I'm sure, Daddy.", she said quietly, but firmly.

He nodded silently, then looked to his wife, "Okay. Let's go home."

Kevin was closest to the door and opened it as the Monroes made their way for it. Tara came up to him and hugged him close, then kissed him softly. Her father watched calmly, even smiling a bit through the grim look still on his face. There was a time when he would have objected to seeing her do this, but not now.

"I'll see you tomorrow, okay?", Tara said.

"You bet.", Kevin replied with a smile.

Mr. Monroe came up and took his hand in both of his, sincere gratitude on his face and in his eyes as he said, "Thank you for saving my little girl, Kevin. I can't ever repay you for this."

Kevin shook his hands and smiled, nodding, too embarrassed to think of a good response. He answered as best as he could saying, "No need, sir. I... ...I'd do it again, anytime."

Mark Monroe chuckled and clapped him a couple of times on the shoulder, smiling, then left out the door behind Tara. Jill Monroe came up and gazed at him, eyes shining. She reached out and took Kevin in her arms and hugged him tight.

"Thank you, Kevin.", she whispered in his ear, "Thank you so much."

Kevin held on to her just as emotionally, still not knowing quite how to respond, and said the first thing that came to his mind.

"I'd die for her, Jill.", he whispered, "I would."

She pulled back and looked deeply into his eyes, surprise in her gaze, and seeing the truth of it, and she could see exactly how he felt about Tara. She smiled angelically at him as she reached up and pulled his head gently down, tenderly kissing his forehead.

"We'll see you tomorrow.", she replied, still smiling, and then left out the front entrance after her husband and daughter. Kevin slowly closed the door as his parents came up and hugged him closely, proud of their son, and glad he hadn't been hurt any worse than he was. Then his father retrieved his umbrella and coat again.

"Come on, Kevin.", his father said, "Let's get you checked out."

Fortunately, the storm had passed some time ago so everything was quiet outside. The rain had stopped. He put on a light sweater and followed his father out to the car.

* * *

"Damn! You weigh a ton when you're drunk!", Jeremy grunted as he heaved Jason by the waist through the front door. Jason didn't hear him, moaning and leaning heavily on him, barely standing at all. It had been a harrowing ride all the way to Jason's home. Jeremy wasn't sure, but it seemed there was a cop car following them as he neared the house. However, he dismissed it out of mind when it went off on its own as soon as he pulled into the driveway. By jerks and sprints, he managed to stumble Jason into his bedroom. Jeremy's own SUV was the only other vehicle in the driveway, so he knew that Jason's mother was still not home. He remembered that her job sometimes had long meetings into the night. This must have been one of them. That was fine by him, as he didn't relish having to explain all this to her.

Reaching the bed he half threw, half let go of Jason and let him plop limply onto the bed. He was a sodden mess and stank to high heaven. Jeremy grimaced to himself and looked around helplessly, knowing what had to be done. He really didn't want to do it, but he couldn't just leave and let his mother find him this way either.

"Damn.", he muttered again to himself.

He began stripping off Jason's clothing and shoes and tossing them into a nearby clothes hamper. Once done, he picked him back up by his arm, draping it around his own shoulders as he hauled him into the bathroom, opened the shower door, and pivoted around, shoving him into the stall and propping him up enough to where he would stand. Once he could be reasonably sure he wouldn't fall, he turned on the shower.

Jason came alive and yelled as the cold torrents hit him. He waved his arms around aimlessly, too drunk to do much more than that. Jeremy was soaked by the water too, but continued to hold his friend up and kept him from slipping until the water temperature warmed up. Then Jason started to lull back to sleep.

"Oh, no you don't!", he said, "I may have had to strip you down to your ugly naked body, but you are going to wash it yourself!"

Lightly slapping his face, he woke Jason up just enough to notice him, grunting each time he was patted in the face, looking at him through bleary eyes and finally recognizing him.

"Jer?", he croaked softly.

Jeremy took the soap, grabbed his hand and slapped it into his palm.

"Here.", he said, irritated, "Clean yourself up. I'm _not_ doing that for you no matter what!"

Jason moved like sludge in slow motion. Gradually, he stood on his own and began to rub the soap bar clumsily over himself. Jeremy remained there to make sure he didn't fall, but moved out of the way of the water stream so the water wouldn't drench him any worse than he already was. When Jason finished, Jeremy handed him the shampoo bottle and waited as he lathered his hair and rinsed it. It seemed to tire him out and Jason leaned into the tiles underneath the shower head, letting the hot water pour over him, lulling him back to sleep.

Jeremy reached in and shut the water off and tugged on his arm as he handed him a towel.

"Take this", he said, "Dry off."

Jason slowly looked back up at him again, then took the towel and leadenly did as he was told. When he finished, Jeremy took the towel and tossed it into the hamper, then half led, half dragged his friend back to the bed. Jason kept trying to go back to sleep on him. Jeremy pulled the covers back and let him sit down on the side. That was all it took. Jason fell into the pillow and was instantly out. Jeremy shook his head and gathered Jason's feet up and put them underneath the covers, pulling the sheets up over him.

He stood there a minute, staring hard at his best friend, his face reflecting the pain of remembering the sight of what Jason had done. In his mind, he kept seeing the friend he had grown up with through school. He didn't even recognize the person he was staring at in the bed. This was not the confident, laid back, talented basketball kid he knew from a year ago. This wasn't that cool guy with whom he had so much fun. He didn't know this, this maniac, who only came out when he drank. Jason was never this way otherwise.

There was going to be hell to pay, no matter what. He thought if he could talk to Tara tomorrow, to make sure she was okay. Maybe he would learn what she intended to do. What worried him most was whether or not she would take legal action and report it to the police. He was afraid that would likely happen, but hoped somehow that maybe she wouldn't. He wanted to talk her out of it. But the way she looked, her face bruised, her clothes torn, cuts all over her, that awful looking cut on the nerd's head bleeding all over his face. Jeremy shook his head again. Even the nerd didn't deserve that. No, they probably would report him. He'd find out tomorrow when he talked to her, if she'd even talk to him.

He looked down on Jason's snoring form, his face taut in shame and worry.

"Never again, Jason.", he said tensely to himself, "You're my best friend, but I'm not covering for you anymore after this is over."

With that, he strode out of the room and left the house.

* * *

The alarm buzzer went off. Jason woke up, painfully alert. The damned thing seemed like it was clanging around the inside of his head. Awkwardly he slapped around the night table trying to find it, only to realize he was on the wrong side of the bed. The buzzer kept hurting his ears. He got up, half stumbled around to the other side, and slammed his palm down on the alarm clock three times in succession, eventually getting it to stop. He relished the silence as he sat down again, his head still throbbing like crazy.

"God, I hurt.', he thought, "I... ...hurt?"

Reaching up, he felt the back of his skull and found the shallow wound, the blood now well clotted into his hair. His lip was swollen, too, and there was a gash across his forehead. He looked down and found the spot like bruise in the middle of his chest. That was particularly tender. Frowning, he wondered what had happened.

'What the hell?... ...Another fight?', he mused sourly, 'Geez, not again.'

He found himself naked, but clean, then thought, 'Did Jeremy bring me home?. Yeah, he must have.'

He couldn't remember anything about the previous night, and he groaned as he realized it was because he had gotten drunk again. The last thing he remembered was finishing off the Jose Cuervo Gold, which got him more worried. Then he remembered why he started drinking again.

'That's what did it.', he said to himself mentally, 'When I saw them kissing like that.'

He recalled he was going to talk to her, to ask her... ...to ask her what? Did he find her? Or them?

He shook his head trying to shake some clue out of his brain. He must have. How did his head get banged up? And his chest? Or maybe he didn't find them at all. So how did he get his wounds?

'Huh.', he thought, 'If it was the nerd, he's gotta be worse off.'

Groaning, he looked at the clock. It was 7:15. Time for school.

'Maybe Jer could tell me.', he thought through the stabs of pain.

He got up slowly, trying to keep the headache that came with his hangover at bay. Every move he made was exquisitely tender. He scrounged up some Advil and took that, then managed to get dressed. He found his car keys on the dresser, and nodded to himself.

'Yeah, Jer must have brought me home.", he thought, "That's where he usually leaves them.'

He trudged out the door, noticing his mother's car, remembering she had that late meeting last night. Groaning, he fervently hoped he had gotten home before she did and hadn't seen him. They'd ground him for sure and take away the truck keys again. He went up to his SUV, opening it up, and was surprised by the stench wafting out of it, beating him back. Waving the air away, he saw the dried vomit and blood on the passenger side and grunted. 'Oh, great! Another detail job.', he thought morosely, 'That's going to cost me.' Gingerly, he climbed into the driver's seat and put his keys into the ignition. Turning the motor over, the truck roared to life. He opened his windows up to air the truck out, then headed slowly out of the driveway for school.

* * *

"What's going on?", asked Crystal.

"I don't know.", Hope replied, annoyed, "Possible called the meeting for this morning. I guess it's to get this whole Bonnie/Tara thing straightened out. You know anything, Marcella?"

"Not me.", said the brunette, "I just found out about it first thing this morning myself."

"Great.", muttered Crystal, irritated, "Has anyone seen Jess or Tara?"

"Not yet.", said Marcella, "What about Kim?"

"Can't say.", Hope answered.

"Bonnie?"

"Don't ask!", Crystal rasped harshly.

Expecting a practice, they were all in cheer uniform, but now it looked like there wouldn't be one. The gym door opened and they all looked up in anticipation to see who it was. But their faces fell again when their new co-captain, also in uniform, slowly walked in. Her head was ducked down and she held her arms crossed in front of her as she walked past the others and took a seat on the bleachers beyond them several feet away. She paid no attention to them, not saying a word. Four pairs of surprised eyes followed her.

Hope gazed at her in confusion, "What's with _you_?"

"Nothing.", Bonnie mumbled, almost inaudibly, still looking straight ahead, "Leave me alone."

"Okay, now you're weirding us out, Bonnie.", said Crystal, "Did Kim knock you off your high horse again or something? You know you shouldn't take it so personally..."

"_I said leave me alone_!", Bonnie screamed at the top of her lungs, giving Crystal a look of such anger that the girl backed up in shock, open mouthed and staring.

"Hey, Bonnie!", said Liz, "Chillax, girl! It can't be that bad! We can work it out!"

Bonnie didn't answer her, no longer paying attention and staring off in the distance again.

Hope and Crystal frowned at each other, nonplussed at her behavior.

"What is _her_ problem?", Crystal whispered very low.

Completely confused, Hope shrugged her shoulders, looking briefly back at Bonnie. Then she plopped back down on the bleacher seat in disgust.

Crystal sighed in exasperation and joined her. Waiting had definitely become more anxiety ridden. Fortunately, they didn't have to wait long as Kim walked in five minutes later. Like them, she was also in uniform. The girls looked at her and became concerned at the wracked look on her face. It was one they had rarely seen so intense.

"What's up, Kim? This doesn't look good.", asked Marcella.

"It isn't.", Kim replied, "I got back late last night from L.A. and got some bad news from Wade on the Kimmunicator. I thought you should know about it, but I had to talk to Tara first."

"Well, if it's about the 'feud' between her and Bonnie," griped Hope as she looked askance at Bonnie, " 'Little Miss Sunshine' over there doesn't look too happy either. So what'd they do? Finally have a knock down, drag out?"

"This has nothing to do with Bonnie.", said Kim.

Bewildered, the girls frowned and glanced at Bonnie momentarily before looking back at Kim. Bonnie also looked at Kim with furrowed eyebrows, wondering, then thinking, 'Oh, no. Did that computer nerd of hers find out something?"

"What is it, Kim?", asked Crystal.

"Tara was attacked last night."

Gasping loudly, the girls shot to their feet.

"Oh my God!"

"Is she all right?"

"Was she hurt ?"

"Who did this?"

Kim put her hands up and answered, "Calm down. She's okay. She did suffer some bruising and cuts and a split lip, but nothing serious. She'll be here soon, but I wanted to come in and let you know what happened before you see her."

"But, Kim! How did this happen? Who..."

"It was Jason Morgan.", she said in monotone.

"What!"

They stared at Kim in sheer shock, mouths agape.

Covering her mouth with her hands, Marcella murmured in sheer horror, "Oh, God."

"I want you all to help her when she gets here, okay?", Kim said, and they all mumbled their assents, still too stunned to answer clearly.

"Of course, Kim, of course! Of my God!", Hope answered quietly, her voice almost lost to the horror she felt.

They started to crowd around each other talking in hushed whispers absorbing the news as Kim looked over at Bonnie. She sat there staring at nothing, not reacting like the others did, making Kim's 'weird alarm' go off. As the girls discussed what to do when they saw Tara, Kim walked over to where Bonnie was sitting. She hovered over her, waiting. Bonnie didn't move an inch, her gaze remaining fixed outward. Kim glared at her for a good while before Bonnie finally got uncomfortable enough to address her.

"What?", she spat out, looking up at her.

"You don't seem too surprised, Bonnie.", Kim said in low voice.

Bonnie stared off again, "I knew about it already."

"Oh?", Kim asked with a raised eyebrow.

"Like you, Possible, I have my sources.", Bonnie answered testily.

"What sources?"

She glared back at her, "You have your secrets. I have mine. Okay?"

"Whatever.", Kim replied testily.

"So, if Jason did this," Bonnie added with dripping sarcasm, "why haven't you gone out and taken him down or something?"

"The police already have the sitch in hand, Bonnie!", Kim riposted, "So much for the 'food chain' then, huh? What is it you like to say to me? 'You sure can pick them?'"

Bonnie looked up at her, a rage of such intensity in her eyes. Kim had never see her that angry before, but it didn't bother her in the least. In fact, she felt a little justified. 'Maybe she'll finally stop all that nonsense.', she thought.

Kim was about to ask her another question when the gym door opened again and Tara walked in with Jess holding on to her. The girls screamed her name, making a fuss and swarming her, hugging Tara with all the caring and support they could muster. They were appalled when they looked at her face, each girl commiserating with her in turn. Even though the swelling had gone down quite a bit and she had used her makeup as deftly as she could to hide them, the injuries were still fairly obvious. Kim looked back at them and smiled, glad the girls were there for her, then turned back to Bonnie.

But Bonnie was gone. Looking around, Kim saw her back disappearing behind the far door as it closed. 'This is not right', she thought. Frowning, she pulled out the Kimmunicator and beeped Wade. The Kimmunicator screen lit up with with him yawning in his pajamas.

"Hey, Kim.", he said sleepily, "Kind of early, isn't it?"

"Sorry, Wade.", she said contritely, "I've got a hunch I need to check out. Everyone I've talked to about the attack was surprised, except Bonnie. She already knew."

"Well, she certainly didn't hear it from the local news channels. They haven't broken the story yet."

"Well, she does know some of the school news reporters. Did they somehow hear about it.?"

"Doubt it, Kim. Especially if the regular news doesn't have it out yet."

"Then how does she know?"

"I can check into it for you."

"Okay, but about that hunch. What have you found out about that video tape you said the police got last night."

"Oh, yeah.", Wade replied, punching a few keys, then looking back at her, "I found out it was turned in anonymously. Nobody claimed credit for it. It was also wiped clean. No prints or anything."

"And the contents?"

"It's confirmed, Kim. The entire attack is on it. Whoever shot this footage had a front row seat. I've uploaded it to the Kimmunicator if you want to see it. But it's ugly."

"I think I'll pass for now. Any chance of tracing it to whoever shot it?"

Wade shook his head, "Not without the tape in hand. I'd have to do some special tests on it. Spectral analysis or maybe gas chromatography studies. But it would ruin the tape."

Kim grimaced as she nodded, "Yeah, and the cops have to keep it for evidence."

"Do you think Bonnie is connected?"

"I don't know." Kim said hesitantly, "I don't think even she would ever condone something like this. Besides, she's seems really upset by it too. But I'm wondering if she knows something about this whole mess."

"You think whoever did the video tape was involved?"

"No.", Kim answered tentatively, "From what Tara told me, I don't think this was planned in advance, and she said nobody else was out there. Either somebody just got lucky and was in the right place at the right time, or maybe followed Jason out there."

"Could be. I'll see what I can find out."

"Please and thank you, Wade. See you."

She clicked the Kimmunicator off and stowed it away, then walked back to the cheer squad as Tara was calmly telling them about the attack and what was being done about it.

"...so my parents and Kevin's parents are in the principal's office now finishing up the paper work with the detective, that's Dave Ponder's dad."

"Who's that?", asked Liz

"Oh, that's one of Kevin's chess club friends. It was really nice of his father to come over and take care of this for us."

"Oh, right!", Hope replied, "I got him in one of my classes. He's a little nerdy, but he's a nice guy."

Tara looked at her, grinning, "Hey, let me tell you from personal experience. Nerdy guys are just fine."

The girls chuckled, then Hope asked, "What about the complaint 'thingy' you had to file?"

"I've already signed it. They should be going out to pick him up soon."

The door opened again as Ron came in, a look of concern on his face. He went directly to Kim and immediately hugged her. She held him just as tightly.

"Wade just told me, Kim. It's awful! Are you okay?"

"I'm fine, Ron.", she said smiling.

"Good. Is Tara all right?"

Kim kissed him, "Yeah. She'll be fine. She's here if you want to say hello."

"Yeah. I sure would", he said, finally seeing her there.

Letting go, he went over and gave Tara a hug and talked to her supportively, Kim standing beside him.

"You're sure you're feeling alright?", Ron asked.

"I'm fine.", Tara replied, smiling, "but I'll feel even better when Kevin gets here from Home Room."

"I hear that.", Ron said, "But he's not in Home Room. I passed him in the parking lot as I was coming in. I think he's headed towards the other side of the school."

Kim frowned, "What was he doing in the parking lot, Ron?"

"I dunno. Looking at someone's truck, I think. Maybe he was thinking of buying one like it."

Kim momentarily mused that over, then suddenly gasped in alarm. She quickly pulled the Kimmunicator out again.

"Wade!"

The boy genius, still in his pajamas and looking even more bleary-eyed, glanced up from his keyboard in irritation and answered, "Kim. Trying to sleep here."

"Sorry, Wade! But this can't wait! Does Jason Morgan's truck have Lo-Jack?"

"Dunno."

"Wade!"

"Okay, okay. I can check."

Wade yawned and became focused. He typed in several keys, then looked back at Kim, "Okay, I'm in. Yep, it sure does."

"Where is it now?"

Wade quickly typed again. He stared back at Kim in surprise through the view screen.

"Kim! It's in the school parking lot!"

"Thanks, Wade!"

Kim shut down the Kimmunicator and stowed it in her pocket, then grabbed Ron and headed for the door, yanking him off balance.

"Whoa! KP! Where are we headed?", Ron yelled.

"To find Kevin!", answered Kim, now being followed by everyone else.

"Jason's here at school and Kevin's looking for him!"

* * *

Jason parked the truck and didn't move, sitting like a dead lump in the driver's seat for a minute. He was queasy, his head was pounding even worse then before. The Advil hadn't helped at all. After a moment of being still, the nausea began to subside a little, and he felt like he could move. He rolled up the windows, got out of the truck, and locked it. Slowly, he began to trudge towards the boys gym. It was still early and there would be plenty of time to find out from Jeremy what happened. He thought briefly of Tara and hoped maybe he could find a way to talk to her, if she would just quit avoiding him.

The gym was beginning to fill up when he got there. It was the cool gathering place for all the jocks before Home Room, and they usually could catch up on all the news and gossip there in time for class. He slowly walked in and was soon greeted by several of the baseball team members. He high fived some of them, exchanged pleasantries, then did the same with some of the swimmers. He spoke softly and kept movements to a minimum. The others seemed to notice his condition and smirked at him, joking about his tying one on again. It irritated him slightly, but he just grinned back and nodded without saying anything and kept going. It wasn't like he hadn't shown up with a hangover before, not to mention cuts and bruises. At the far end, the bleachers were partially pulled out and he could see some of his buddies on the basketball team. He waved 'hi' at them and saw Bill and Don wave back limply, not smiling or anything. He frowned a little, wondering why they seemed so distant in their greeting. He saw Jeremy sitting with them.

'He must have told them something about last night.', he thought, "Good, he can tell me, then."

He walked up and Jeremy turned, surprised to see him.

Frowning, he asked, "Jace! What are you doing here?"

Jason smirked as he sat down next to him, "Hey, man. It's a school day. I gotta go just like anybody else in order to graduate, you know."

"Man, you're in no shape to be here! After last night..."

"Yeah", Jason interrupted, "About that. What happened?"

Jeremy gaped wide eyed at him and whispered, "You don't remember?"

That worried Jason, and he frowned back at him, asking, "Jer, you know it happens sometimes. Now, what happened?"

Jeremy blinked and opened his mouth to speak when he caught sight of someone else milling through the crowd and heading straight for them, a smaller boy with a bandage on his head.

"Damn.", he muttered as he got up to meet him.

* * *

Kevin strode down the hall, single-mindedly focused on his search. He had shown up at school with twelve fresh stitches in his scalp and a new bandage over them, courtesy of his father's expert care. Otherwise, he looked the same except for the angry look on his face. His parents had driven in with the BMW, and he took his mother's car since they would have to leave for work afterwards. But when he pulled into the parking lot he couldn't believe it, seeing that truck there, appalled that Jason even had the nerve to show his face at school today. More than that though, he was scared he might look for Tara. That was one thing he was not going to allow to happen. He got out of the car quickly and stared at the truck, trying to figure out where Jason might have gone. Coming up empty, he ran into the school building, quickly searching the halls but finding nobody, not even any jocks. After a quick foray in the corridors near his homeroom, he stopped and thought hard, trying to figure out where Jason might be, then remembered that the jocks liked to hang out in the boys gym before Home Room. He ran there as quickly as he could.

Stopping in front of the entrance, he paused and took a deep breath. With determination, he opened the door and stepped through, looking around and trying to pick the tall basketball center out of the crowd. He waded in slowly, carefully studying all the taller boys, finally spotting Jason on the far side sitting on a bleacher, slowly massaging his head. The gym was now filled with jocks, all walking about and talking, waiting for the bell to ring. Kevin could see Jeremy Wendell was there too, sitting close by and conversing with Jason, a hang dog look on his face. It was obvious Jason was having one heck of a hangover, and neither he nor Jeremy looked happy.

'Well, that's just too damn bad.', Kevin thought.

Weaving through the crowd, he was starting to draw some looks from the other boys, wondering about the bandage on his head. He paid them no attention, his sight centered only on his intended target. Just as he cleared the last cluster of people and came within sight of him, Jeremy looked up and saw Kevin, his face going pale. He stood up and strode out in front of the bleacher towards Kevin. Several of Jason's team mates were also nearby and noticed the nerd approaching.

Kevin was still _persona non grata _with this team from the previous confrontation. They began to get up from the bleachers and converge around him. Kevin paid them no mind, intending to walk right up to Jason until Jeremy took a stand in front of him and blocked his way. Both of them tense, they tried to stare each other down.

"You're not doing this, froob.", Jeremy said threateningly, "Leave him be."

"What's he doing here?", Kevin demanded.

"What does it look like? Getting over the hangover! What do you care? Give him some time and then we can talk. Is Tara okay?"

"It's none of your damn business!"

Jeremy started to retort back, but Kevin just cut him off, instead looking directly at Jason.

"Hey, Morgan!", he yelled at him, suddenly catching everyone's attention, "Did you enjoy your little stunt last night? Is that the only way you can get your kicks, by forcing yourself on a girl after ripping her clothes off?"

The entire gym went completely quiet, every single student looking on in stunned silence. Jason looked up, wide eyed. Slowly, he stood up, his face registering surprise and confusion.

Everything went still, and everyone around them, especially Jason's team mates, developed hard looks on their faces once the shock had worn away. Four of them now put themselves next to Jeremy, staring down at the diminutive teenager. They were not about to let this dweeb accuse their team mate like this and get away with it. Bill and Don, however, didn't move from where they were. The others standing with Jeremy weren't sure about what the nerd was talking about, but they still didn't care for it. They stood their ground. Even so, Kevin took no notice of them at all, his attention remaining fixed only on Jason. The bigger boys started to close in on Kevin in a threatening manner, but stopped abruptly when a form somersaulted in from above and landed right behind their quarry.

The boys stopped dead in their tracks and started to back off as Kim Possible, in full cheerleading uniform, stood up behind Kevin and faced them, a very cold look on her face. At the entrance to the gym, Ron and the other cheerleaders stood, Tara amongst them, her eyes wide with anxiety. Kevin briefly glanced at Kim, realizing they must have figured out what he was going to do when he didn't show up at the girls gym. He was glad for the back up, but it made no difference concerning what he was going to do. He stared back at Jason, who had not moved, his face still registering the pain from the hangover and the accompanying headache, doing nothing but stare back at Kevin just as hard.

Kim glared coldly all around her at his team mates, saying, "I don't think this concerns you boys right now! In fact, I'd say it's time you hit Home Room!"

"Says who, Possible? You?", retorted Jeremy angrily.

Jeremy rapidly backed up two steps as Kim executed a spring jump and landed directly in front of him, staring him down.

"You want to try me?", she hissed in a low dangerous voice, and then looked at the other four in turn as she added louder, "_Any of you_?"

Jeremy blinked twice, and slowly backed off, raising both hands with palms outward in surrender, "I'm not looking for a fight here."

"Then don't start one!", retorted Kim forcefully, "Okay, boys! Home Room! Now!"

They all looked at each other and murmured agreement, individually slipping away into the crowd and heading out of the gym. The last to leave was Jeremy who stood momentarily by his friend.

"Sorry, Jace.", he whispered, "Looks like you're on your own for this one. No way we can take her."

"I know.", Jason said as he nodded slowly, resignation taking over his face, "I know. It's okay."

The hockey star looked back, squinting at Kim as she stood next to Kevin. Then he walked through the crowd and left the gym.

Jason looked at Kevin again, his face now getting angry.

"What do you want?", he muttered, "Why can't you just leave me alone?"

"I asked you a question, Morgan! Answer it!", yelled Kevin.

Jason snapped. Hands clenched, he stomped over to where Kevin was standing.

"I'm _so_ gonna pound you into the ground so hard, shrimp!" he said through gritted teeth.

Some of the girls screamed until he was stopped cold by Kim stepping in front of him and checking his advance.

Jason tried to stare her down as Kevin walked up to them. But despite the fact Jason towered well over Kim, it was evident she was the one who was winning the contest.

Kevin put his hand on her shoulder and said, "Kim, let me take care of this. It's between him and me."

Her eyes still on Jason, Kim said, "Kevin, he's twice your size."

"Doesn't matter. It's not about whether he can beat me or not. I still need to do this. Besides, I can move pretty good."

Keeping Jason in her peripheral vision, she looked back at him closely and could see there was no uncertainty about it in his eyes. She shifted her eyes once more and stared hard again at Jason.

Slowly, she nodded, still lasering the basketball star with her gaze.

"So I've heard.", she replied, "Okay, G-man, it's your show. But I'll be right behind you if you need me."

"Thanks, Kim. But I really don't want you to interfere, even if he swings at me, okay."

She frowned at him, "Are you sure about this?"

He gave her a smile and replied, "I'm sure. It'll be okay."

Kim grinned back at him, nodding, gave another cold look in Jason's direction, and stepped out of the way, ready for anything. His rage arrested by Kim's intervention, Jason stood there staring at Kevin. Though uncertain, the hate in his glare was recognizable through his hangover.

"Well, Morgan?", Kevin continued, "Are you going to answer me? Is that how you get your kicks?"

Jason hissed at him in angry confusion, "What are you talking about, you damn nerd? You're not making sense!"

"You don't remember last night?"

"What about it?", he retorted.

"You don't remember assaulting Tara and ripping her clothes off?"

Jason's eyes grew large, raging at Kevin, and he swung at him. The cheerleaders screamed again briefly and Kim started to go back in, but she held up as Kevin easily avoided the blow with a retreat move and circled around. Jason staggered forward, off balance, the sudden movement making his head scream again with throbbing pain. Holding his skull with his hands, he looked up and sneered at the chess captain.

"I don't know what you're talking about!", he spat at him, "I would never do anything like that to Tara!"

He straightened up and came after Kevin again, swinging repeatedly.

"Yes, you did, Jason.", Kevin said as he circled around again, "But if you didn't, then just tell me what you did last night."

"I didn't do anything!", he rasped, still trying to catch up with the smaller boy.

Kevin easily dodged him, forcing Jason had to finally stop, too dizzy to keep going. Breathing hard, he recovered after a few moments and started after Kevin again, his face etched with fury. This time, Kevin stood his ground, allowing Jason to catch up. The basketball star raised his fist to smash Kevin's face in.

"You can tear me up all you want, Jason.", he said calmly, "It isn't going to change a thing."

Jason's face became twisted as he glared at him. Kevin's eyes showed no fear, remaining still and quiet. His fist strained to go forward, but something in Jason's mind held him back, his face registering confusion at the confidence in Kevin's demeanor. He wondered at Kevin's question.

"I don't remember.", he whispered.

"What?"

Jason glared hard at Kevin.

"_I don't remember_!", he screamed at Kevin.

Kevin looked back at him calmly and asked, "Then how do you know what I said isn't true?"

"No way, man!", Jason shouted angrily, "I... ...I wouldn't do that! You're lying. You're... ...you're..."

Jason's face mangled itself into pure fury, and he raised his fist again to finish the runt off, until he caught sight of movement. The nerd stood there, motionless. What Jason saw was Tara walking forward out of the crowd, stopping about thirty feet away, timidly standing there and staring at him. He could see she was afraid for the nerd, but what really shocked him was the obviously split lip and the black eye... ...and then he saw a look on her face he had never seen before. He almost couldn't recognize her. Her face was so twisted in such a mixture of sheer emotion warped in an ugly characature of the face he used to know and adore. This look was... ...it was... ...what?... ...fright?... ...anger?... ...anxiety?

...terror?...

...hatred?...

When they had dated, he had never seen much of anything in terms of real emotion in her features, but the sheer pain he could see on her face. It tore him apart. She was truly terrified of him, horribly terrified, and enraged, like he was some kind of monster. It stunned him, making him think, "What? Why?"

He heard a scream coming through the air. It was tinny and faint, though something was familiar about it. There was more sound and noises of a fight. He looked over and saw Kim swiftly walking back towards him, holding her Kimmunicator in front of her, shoving the view screen in his face as a video played out on it. It was dark and rainy, and he saw two people struggling against a tree, a boy and a girl. As he focused his blurred eyes on it, he recognized who they were.

Slowly, Jason lowered his fists, staring at the view screen in total shock, completely numb.

"No.", he whispered in a tortured rasp, "My God, no... ...it... ...it can't..."

Kevin looked him straight in the eye and nodded, "Yeah, man. You gotta answer for it."

Jason froze in place, unable to think or move. He blinked at Kevin, his eyes fixed in a dumb stare. Kim shut the Kimmunicator off and stowed it, knowing he had seen enough.

Vacantly, Jason looked at Kevin and asked softly, "You... ...you were gonna let me... ...just pound you into the ground?"

Kevin slowly nodded.

"If that was what it took for me to get you to listen, yeah.", he replied, "Because I know I would get back up and recover from it."

Jason frowned at him, confused, "But... ...why?"

Kevin opened his mouth... ...and stopped. He realized that without even thinking about it, he was about to say something he had never before admitted, even to Tara, especially to Tara. And for the first time, he wondered what in the world had ever kept him from saying it. Last night was when he really should have said it, just like he should have said it on many opportunities before, and always, somehow, he lost his nerve at the last second. Somehow, even knowing how much she cared for him, he was so scared it would somehow drive her away, his words strangling in his throat before he could get them out. How many times had he done that?...

He looked around and saw her standing there, so much worry and concern in her eyes, relieved that Jason wasn't threatening him anymore. And for the first time he could see how her eyes cried out just how much she really loved him. He knew then. He should have told her long before this. It was so clear now, so easy to say, even with close to fifty people in the gym as witnesses, when before he couldn't even think of saying it when he was alone with her. The room was dead silent, everyone raptly watching and feeling the tension being played out.

Still gazing at Tara, Kevin stood very tall as he softly answered Jason, "Simple, dude. I love her."

Jason stared at him, uncomprehending, as the room filled with low conversation. Kevin looked back at him, his eyes steadily meeting his gaze. There was a slight squeak of surprise beyond which had somehow escaped Tara's throat.

Kim's eyes widened slightly, smiling excitedly. The other cheerleaders gasped in awe, hurriedly whispering to each other. Tara went silent, her eyes closing in bliss with tears spilling onto her cheeks as she hugged her arms around herself.

The basketball star looked stunned, motionless as Mr. Barkin and Coach Sanders walked into the gym and went straight for him. The students rapidly made a path for the two huge men when they saw their faces. They were always wary of Barkin anyway when he had that stern look on him, knowing very clearly when he wasn't happy about something, but the look on his face today was the most severe they had ever seen it, truly angry beyond words, and Coach Sanders' face was just as hard. They came up to Jason and looked down on him.

"Mr. Morgan.", Barkin said very softly, more threatening than anyone had ever heard before, "You will go to the principal's office with me, _now_."

Jason gazed up at him and Coach Sanders, then back at Kevin, a resigned look taking over his face. He slowly turned and followed Mr. Barkin out of the gym, Coach Sanders bringing up the rear. As he passed Tara, he looked at her and opened his mouth to say something, but Tara's eyes remained closed and she turned away from him. Rejected, he choked, and unable to speak, he kept walking out of the gym with the two teachers as the Home Room bell went off. Slowly, the students in the gym began to disperse, heading for their classes, murmuring excitedly to themselves about the morning's events as they went. It would be all over the school by lunch time.

Kim came up to Kevin, her face shining with a broad smile. He smiled sheepishly back at her and looked briefly at the floor. Then she hugged him tenderly and kissed him on the cheek very softly.

"Kevin.", she said proudly, "As Monique would say, you are definitely one MFBF."

Kevin couldn't help but blush, but he smiled back and said, "Thanks, Kim. I owe you one."

"Hey, no b...", she said almost off hand, then thought twice about it, "No, Kevin. This time, I think I owe you one, for Tara. Now I think there's a certain cheerleader who would like to hear from you right about now..."

She went off to join Ron and the rest of the squad as they walked away, leaving Tara standing alone. The rest of the gym had already cleared out and only the two of them remained. His footsteps echoing slightly, Kevin slowly walked over and took Tara's hands in his own and brought them up to his lips. He kissed them very gently and then placed them over his heart.

"I should have said it a long time ago." he whispered, "I do love you, Tara, with all of my heart."

Tara was weeping openly, the tears flowing.

"I know, Kevin. I know.", she replied softly, "And I love you, too, with all of my heart."

She wrapped her arms around him, crying on his shoulder in joy.

**The chess game is finishing up, and we can just about put one in the win column for the Queen and her Knight, but there is even more to come. Next chapter in a few days.**


	13. Chapter 12

**Author's Note: A surprise action from Jason forces Tara and Kevin to re-examine their feelings about him, and how they will reconcile themselves with what has happened. Then they must go on with their lives as Tara looks to her future and Kevin stumbles onto a part of her past.**

**Chapter Twelve**

**The Enemy King Resigns**

Kevin and Tara waited nervously on a lushly padded bench outside the door of the district attorney's office, expecting to be called in at any moment. They weren't sure what to expect after so little time, only a few weeks, since the night of the attack. Both of them were surprised by the call in which they learned the DA wanted to talk to them about what they might want to say at the punishment phase of the trial. Kevin wanted to know why they wanted to get so far ahead of themselves before they even had the trial, pointedly asking that, but the DA said it was 'all taken care of'. He just needed the statements from both of them before he proceeded, and that he would explain everything when they met with him.

This bothered Kevin ever since. He sat motionless, rethinking all of it in his mind, brooding on the possibilities, not able to figure it out. Tara was simply unsettled, not wishing to even be here much less know what it was all about. All four parents offered to come with them in support, but they decided they should be able take care of it on their own. They hoped it was only a minor detail of some sort. It seemed like it was, from the DA's tone. Even so, Tara sat very still, morosely quiet, staring at the ground dejectedly. Kevin reached over and held her hand, and she looked up and smiled, giving it a squeeze and mouthing to him, 'I'm okay'.

The door opened and the prosecutor, Mr. Detlin appeared. He smiled and beckoned them to come in and sit down. They entered the room timidly, slowly seating themselves in well padded chairs at a darkly stained oak table as the DA closed the door.

"Would you like something to drink?", he asked politely, "Bottled water? A soda or coffee?"

Tara meekly shook her head. Kevin answered, "No, thank you."

Mr. Detlin nodded and sat down across the table from them. He immediately got down to business.

"Very well. Thank you for coming in today.", he said, "I'll get to the point as to why I called you here. I realize it's only been a few weeks, but things have progressed rapidly in the case, and we are ready to expedite it fully."

Kevin stared at him through slitted eyes.

"What do you mean 'expedite', sir?", he asked suspiciously, "We haven't even started the trial or anything. I thought this whole thing would take a couple of years at least."

"Well, we've been fortunate. There won't be a trial."

Tara gasped. Kevin gaped wide-eyed.

"What do you mean, no trial?", he blurted out.

"Mr. Morgan decided to plead guilty to all charges."

Tara and Kevin looked at each other in stunned surprise.

"Oh my God." whispered Tara.

Kevin looked at Mr. Detlin again, "So, does that mean he'll go to prison?"

"Maybe.", Mr. Detlin said cautiously, "The Morgans have a very good defense attorney. What you need to understand is we have worked out a plea arrangement."

"A plea arrangement?", asked Tara.

"That's right. Miss Monroe.", the DA answered.

"I see.", said Kevin cautiously, "So you're saying Jason agreed to plead guilty to some lesser charges?"

"Actually, it didn't work out quite that way at first.", the DA said with a curious expression, "In the beginning, he wouldn't contest the original charges at all. He wanted to plead guilty to all of them."

Kevin's mouth fell open in surprise. Tara went pale.

"Why?", she said, exasperated, "I don't understand. Why would he do such a thing?"

"He wouldn't give me a good answer, and still hasn't.", replied Mr. Detlin, "He just kept saying he wanted this whole ordeal to be done and over with. His parents and attorney had to argue with him for a long time before he would agree to let his lawyer do his job."

"And you agreed with that?", Kevin said, astonished.

"I am bound by ethics to encourage Mr. Morgan to let his lawyer handle the case, Mr. Guberman,", the DA answered firmly, "and I am glad he did. I certainly wouldn't want the conviction getting successfully appealed later on for lack of proper representation by his lawyer."

Kevin frowned in concentration, nodding thoughtfully, "Yeah, okay, I see that. That sounds fair. But this compromise worries me."

"I'm understand your concern, Mr. Guberman.", replied the DA soberly, "Once Mr. Morgan was convinced to let his attorney handle his case we began a discussion about proceeding to trial. What the defense attorney and I actually did then was negotiate the deal, as Mr. Morgan was still adamant about not wanting to go to court. That did give me quite a bit of leverage. My recommendation was the maximum sentences, of course. Initially, the defense wanted to drop all the charges down to two counts of misdemeanor assault."

"No!", said Tara hotly, her eyes lighting up with anger.

"Relax, Ms. Monroe. I didn't agree to it, nor would I", he said, quickly assuaging her concerns, "But there is a compromise in place. He will agree to plead guilty to two lesser charges. Part of the deal is that we did work out some possible sentencing arrangements in return for the guilty pleas. But that also depends on you two. The judge in this case feels particularly favorable to considering the statements made by the victims to the defendant at sentencing."

Tara eyes went wide as she protested, "_So_ not going to happen! I will _not_ be in the same room with him! I won't do it!"

Kevin reached out and held onto her hand, "It's okay, Tara. I'm sure you don't have to."

"He's right. You don't have to.", the DA reassured her, "As he is agreeing to plead guilty, it's a moot point for sentencing anyway. You only have to face him if you want to do that. But a written statement to the judge could go a long way towards a decision on the actual sentence."

"Wouldn't the defense object to such a statement?", asked Kevin.

"No they can't. And in this case, I made it part of the plea agreement anyway."

"I see. So what is it you want us to say?"

"Address the defendant as if you were talking to him in the courtroom. Say what you feel. Let him know the hurt and pain he has caused you. Tell him what you think should happen to him because of it. The statements will be recorded and given to the judge and the defense. Now, the actual charges that were agreed upon will be felony unwanted sexual contact and third degree assault. They are less than what I felt appropriate, of course, but the major thing I preserved in this deal is that he will be labeled a sexual offender. He'll have to register for life."

"And prison?", asked Tara.

"That could very well depend upon what you say in your statement."

Kevin nodded, satisfied with the explanation. He looked back at Tara, her face a mix of anger and worry at this point.

"Could you let us have the room, please?", asked Kevin, "We need to talk."

Mr. Detlin nodded and replied, "Sure. Take your time. I've left memo pads and pens here for you to write your statements should you decide to do it that way. You can also record them by video if you wish."

"Thank you.", Kevin said soberly.

The DA smiled and left the room. Kevin faced Tara again, who now stared hard at him.

"It doesn't feel right. I... ..._so_... ...don't want to do this.", she stuttered in a small voice, so filled with rage now she started shaking.

"I understand.", Kevin replied soothingly, "Neither do I. But if it will help get this behind us, as well as behind Jason."

"To _hell_ with Jason!", she yelled suddenly, standing up so forcefully she shoved her chair to one side several feet. Turning away, she muttered, "He can drop off a damn cliff into the ocean as far as I'm concerned! I don't ever want to hear his name again!"

Kevin grimaced to himself as he slowly came forward and put his hands on the backs of her shoulders, caressing her arms as he reached around and held on to her from behind, nuzzling her head with his own.

'I'm sorry, Tara. I wasn't expecting this. It's... ...so sudden. I thought we'd have more time before we had to deal with it."

"Doesn't matter.", she said as she closed her eyes and began to relax, her hands coming up and gently holding his arms around her and relishing the closeness, "I don't know if I can ever deal with it."

She responded to his touch, leaning her head into his, gently nudging it for a moment before turning around in his embrace and holding on to him. She kissed him deeply for a long time. As she let go, she looked intensely into his eyes.

'I'm sorry, Kevin. I just don't know."

"It's okay.", he said with a momentary smile, "You don't have to do it if you don't want to. But, you know, I've actually been thinking a lot about this. I thought there might be a point where we might get the chance to speak out. So I figured out what I wanted to say."

Tara's face changed, registering concern.

"Please hear me out.", he said before she could reply, "I want to tell you what I think I need to do about it, and I hope you will agree or at least understand. You see, when Mr. Detlin told us that Jason was willing to plead guilty to the original charges, that told me the last thing I needed to know. Before that, I was concerned he might get off too easy, but now I don't think so."

She kept staring, her face inquisitive and worried at the same time.

"I've spent a lot of time in temple hashing this out in my mind.", he continued.

Surprising him, this seemed to amuse her.

"I noticed your Saturdays were more reserved lately.", she said with a quick smirk, "If I didn't know better I would have thought there was somebody else."

"Yeah, right.", he said drollfully, as she chuckled for a moment, but it didn't last, her demeanor sinking again into worry after that.

He looked at her with a playful half frown, half smile saying 'You know better than that'. He blinked his eyes a couple of times and also became serious again...

"I know I didn't show it that much, but I felt just as angry as you. I can't tell you how many times I wanted him dead, or worse, or how many times I wanted take that tire iron away from him and smash his face into pulp. To make him feel pain that would never end.

"But, you know, after a while, you realize that's just the anger talking. It's revenge that's talking. It didn't feel right. So I talked to my rabbi. He's a really cool guy to talk to, and he said some things that really helped me to understand what I think is the best thing to do. We read passages from the Bible and the Torah, as well as some other really deep stuff that other rabbis have written, and what I got out of all that soul searching kept bringing me back to one passage I read about in the Torah. It goes like this.

"What it says basically is that when a person has committed a sin that concerns interpersonal relationships, such as personal injury, theft, or slander, forgiveness from God is not forthcoming, unless the aggrieved party grants forgiveness as well. Confession of the sin is part of this process, but it will not help if the perpetrator does not ask for and get forgiveness. For some Jews, it is considered a religious obligation to forgive if the injurer asks you for it. Like you, I didn't want to do that, or even think about it. I kind of figured that, 'hey, Jason never asked forgiveness', so I didn't have to give him anything. I didn't even have to think about it. I just thought 'Let him rot'.

"But then I remembered what happened in the gym."

Kevin reached down and held Tara's hands in his own, gazing steadily into her eyes, wanting her to understand how sincerely he felt about what he was telling her.

"You didn't see the look on his face when he saw the video of the attack, Tara.", he said, "It destroyed him. He was totally blown away. He had no idea he was capable of that. I am certain of it. I was right there, and I saw it on his face. There's no question a part of him is responsible, but I saw a side of him then that I'm sure had no hand in this, and wouldn't if he could help it. I still remember how his eyes changed when he realized what he had done. It was like the spark of life was completely burned out of him. He wasn't physically hurt, Tara, but I don't think I have ever seen anyone's spirit so completely crushed, and I think that video will haunt him for the rest of his life. Can you honestly tell me that when you and he were dating that he didn't have some good in him? You dated him for what? Two or three months, right? You can't tell me there wasn't something you liked about him, can you?"

Her face was fixed in consternation as she answered hesitantly, "Jason was... ...okay at the beginning. There were... ...some okay times."

He nodded to her, "What I'm saying is it was the alcohol that changed him, made him a monster. There are people like that, who can't handle liquor, and it does that to them. He's one of them. As long as he doesn't drink, the monster can't appear."

Kevin looked away momentarily, a tense look on his face when he looked back at her.

"I don't want to hold this... ...this hate in me, Tara. I don't know that I will ever actually hear Jason say he's sorry for what he did. But I think I did just hear him say it by his choice not to take this to trial and accepting whatever punishment they would give him. If that's true, he was willing to let them pretty much destroy his life. To me that sounds like a very profound apology."

"How? How do you know he's not just playing for sympathy or something?", she asked, frowning again.

"What would he get out of it?", he replied, "He would have given up all his rights. For the original charges, they would still have to give him the minimum, twenty years, which is bad enough."

She blinked in thought, quietly digesting what he was saying.

"But there's something else.", he continued, "In the Torah, Jews can forgive if they choose even if the offender has not apologized. It goes like this. 'If one, who has been wronged by another, does not wish to rebuke or speak to the offender — because the offender is simple or confused — then if he sincerely forgives him, neither bearing him ill-will nor administering a reprimand, he acts according to the standard of the pious.'"

"You memorized that?"

"Well, it sort of stuck out in my mind when I read it. In Devarim, I think."

"Devarim?

"Oh, yeah. In English, that's Deuteronomy."

"So you think he's confused? He understands now perfectly well what he did."

"I think so, but he didn't beforehand. Now that he does, he acted in a way that says he's repentant."

"But he hasn't said so directly to us, especially to me."

Kevin nodded and bit his lip, "I hope he'll do that, but I am also willing to give him some leeway now that he's done this. It might be something for you to think about, too."

Her blue eyes reflected her concern, "So, you would forgive him."

He took a deep breath before answering.

"I'm saying I think it best to find a way to do that.", he said, "I truly believe that if Jason doesn't drink, he'll be okay. I'm still not saying that he isn't a jerk."

She snorted sarcastically at that, "Yeah, I know."

"Right. Look, I wouldn't want to be friends with him, but..."

Kevin stopped talking when Tara placed her fingertips lightly against his lips. She closed her eyes and nodded, sighing deeply, the gesture telling him she understood where he was coming from.

"Kevin, I love you.", she began softly, "I do understand what you're saying. I haven't been able to shut it out of my mind that easily either, and I have been trying to figure out what to do, too. I went to our pastor. She's really a neat lady, and we've talked about this, a lot."

She released his hands and walked over to the window, her eyes downcast to the floor as she thought hard to form her words. When she was ready, she turned around and looked at him, wrapping her arms around herself.

"Right after the attack, I was so... ...so angry, so... ...enraged. God, I hated him so much. He made me feel so... ...so dirty... ... so..."

"You know it's not your fault, Tara.", he interjected, concerned that she blamed herself.

"I know, Kevin", she said quickly, reassuring him, "I know. I don't feel any responsibility for any part of his behavior now, but for a short time I did feel like maybe I had brought it on. I know it's irrational, and I realize it now. But it's hard for a girl not to feel that way sometimes when something like this happens to her, even for a little while."

"Yeah.", Kevin replied softly, "Yeah. I think I understand."

"It's funny.", she continued, "There's something in the New Testament that my pastor showed me. When I first read it, I didn't like reading it, didn't want to. I couldn't accept it. That was two or three days after the attack. Since then, I've thought more and more on it."

"Looks like I wasn't the only one doing some soul searching."

She smiled briefly at him before her demeanor became serious again.

"Yeah. Anyway, what I remember is from a book called Collosians. It goes, 'Forgive each other just as the Lord has forgiven you, so you also must forgive.'"

"Sounds a lot like what I just said."

She smiled, "Yeah, it does."

Her forehead wrinkled into worry again and she frowned, saying, "Kevin, I realize I can't go on forever hating him either. I know I can't live that way. I understand that I should forgive, but I can't. Not deep down anyway, I can't, at least I can't right now."

Kevin nodded, looking down at the floor, "You don't have to, Tara. I said what I said because I want you to know what's on my conscience."

"So, what are you going to say in your statement?"

Kevin took a deep breath and looked back up at her, "I am going to say that what he did was something that he has to pay for. He has to make restitution in some way. But at the same time, if he truly is sorry for what he did, and I believe he is from what I heard today, I don't want to destroy his life either. I want him to have a chance to recover from this, provided he does it the right way."

"So would you agree with parole for him?"

He looked steadily at her, "Only if he adheres to certain requirements. I want to make sure there's no chance of this happening again."

Her face wrenched up in pain as she turned and looked out the window again, tears starting to appear in her eyes.

"It's not enough, Kevin. For me, it's not enough."

She started crying softly and he came to her, gathering her back into her arms, and he held her as she let her emotions pour out.

"I still feel the anger too much.", she cried, "I still... ...Oh, God! How much I hate him! How much I want to make him suffer for what he did to me, for how filthy I felt! I want him to... ...I still want him to rot in jail for as long as I can make him do it, Kevin! I feel that way because I don't think I will ever get completely over this. I want him to feel every day the pain he put me through."

Kevin held her as she let it out, caressing her head gently.

"You don't have to if you don't feel it, Tara.", he whispered, "If you want to make a statement that says exactly that. Then do it."

"I so want to.", she sobbed, "I do, but I'm not."

He let go and held her shoulders, looking at her.

Her eyes full of tears, some spilling onto her face, she looked at him with those sky blue orbs, like sunshine, the moisture making them sparkle. He was moved by how much they shone even as sad as she was then. She put her arms around his neck, looking deep into his soul as she returned his gaze.

"When I think about this rationally.", she said very softly, "When I can keep these feelings down, I keep coming to the same conclusion. There are times I can't control the emotion and it just floods over me and takes hold. Then I can't do anything but tear around my room or run around like crazy outside trying to keep from screaming my head off at the world, demanding it to tell me why it did this to me.

"But then there's the one thing that always grounds me, that brings me back to sanity.

"And that's you, Kevin, you."

He stared in awe as she smiled wryly at him.

"And when I do think of you.", she continued, "I can think of some of the things he did that were okay. And because of you being who you are, and what you mean to me, I can see that it is possible in him, even now. So I am going to try. I will try to forgive him."

Kevin was near tears himself now, caressing her face and saying, "I _so_ love you."

She smiled back at him, leaned in, and kissed him.

"You are such a nerd.", she said chuckling, "It's a good thing I love you anyway."

Kevin swallowed hard, smiling broadly and replying, "You can say that again."

He leaned in and kissed her again for a long time. When they finally came up for air, she pulled back and looked at him, sighing with the knowledge they still had a decision to make here.

"Well,", he asked, "Do you know what you want to write down now?"

She nodded and said, "Yeah. I think I do."

* * *

The courtroom was hushed into quiet whisperings as it was called to order once the judge sat down. After ruffling some papers on his desk, he looked at everyone in the gallery studiously, ignoring the quiet stares from the men standing at the two tables in front. The procedure was only a formality but decorum and tradition had to be maintained, and though he didn't expect it, he didn't want any disruption from the crowd. Satisfied that everything seemed to be in order, the judge looked up at the prosecuting attorney.

"Mr. Detlin, are you ready to proceed?"

"Yes, your honor."

"And Mr. Bailey?"

"The defense is ready, your honor."

The judge glanced one last time at the papers on his desk before looking back up again.

"I see an agreement has been reached here. But I do note, Mr. Detlin, that there is no provision for allocution. Is that correct?"

"Yes, your honor. Normally I would require that. But our examining psychiatrist has confirmed the defense's contention that the defendant truly has no memory of the crimes. So we will stand by the facts of the case through the evidence of his actions which is overwhelming by witness accounts and the videotape record."

"Of course. I have reviewed it all. I have also read the statements that both victims have sent in regarding the punishment for this defendant. Your recommendations are in part a result of this?", asked the judge.

"Yes, your honor. This was done in lieu of their having the opportunity to face the defendant at sentencing. I believe the defense has received copies as well. Since the plea arrangement is now in place, we are ready to proceed."

"Very well, Mr. Detlin. And does the defense concur with the agreement?"

The defense attorney replied, "We do, your honor. We stipulate to the facts of the case as presented by the prosecution. My client will not deny the events of that night despite his lack of memory of them. And we have no objection to the recommendations for sentencing as proposed in the agreement."

"I see.", said the judge.

After a pause, the judge looked back up to the defendant.

"Good.", he replied, "For the record then. The original charges filed under Colorado Revised Statues of C-R-S eighteen dash three dash four-oh-two for felony sexual assault and C-R-S eighteen dash three dash two-oh-three for second degree assault with a deadly weapon by reason of the plea agreement are reduced to C-R-S eighteen dash three dash four-oh-four, section two, felony unlawful sexual contact and C-R-S eighteen dash three dash two-oh-four misdemeanor assault in the third degree. Does the defendant understand the charges to which he is pleading guilty?"

The defense lawyer looked over to the tall young man standing beside him.

Jason Morgan stood there very quietly, dressed immaculately in coat and tie, his eyes diverted downward to the floor. He was still too numb from the events of the last several weeks, and how fast his life had been shattered, and he no longer cared that much either.

He looked up at the judge momentarily before looking down again, and answered in a small voice, "Yes, your honor."

"And do you confirm for the record that you are pleading guilty to the charges as specified here?"

"Yes, your honor."

"Since you cannot allocute, do you confirm that you have no memory of your crimes, but that you do not deny them based on the evidence presented in this case?"

"Yes, your honor."

The judged paused a moment as he considered his decision then nodded slightly to himself, having made up his mind.

"I find the arrangement sufficient. I will accept the guilty plea of the defendant. Mr. Bailey, I have received your request that sentencing not be delayed at this time."

"Yes, your honor. It is my client's wish to bring this terrible episode in his life to a speedy close so that he can go on with his life as soon as possible."

The judge nodded, "I see. Then as the plea agreement has been worked out and agreed to by both parties, I will pass sentence. Does the defendant have anything he wishes to say before I proceed?"

Jason looked up at the judge again, his face strained, and whispered, "I just want to say how sorry I am, your honor, and that I deserve worse."

The judge nodded again, and solemnly considered Jason's words for a few moments before he spoke.

"Very well.", he said, "Jason Morgan, you have been found guilty of felony unlawful sexual contact and misdemeanor assault in the third degree. For the crime of unlawful sexual contact, in accordance to statute, I hereby sentence you to a term of not less than two years and no more than six years in the state penitentiary. For the crime of misdemeanor assault in the third degree, I sentence you to a term of no less than six months and no more than two years in the state penitentiary, both sentences to run concurrently. However, in compliance with the plea agreement, both sentences are suspended with the conditions of probation, including completion of alcohol and sexual offender rehabilitation as agreed upon."

The judged sighed for a moment before continuing.

"I want you to be aware, Mr. Morgan, that I find the prosecutor's plea agreement most generous. If I find you in my courtroom again on an alcohol related offense like this again, or if you violate the terms of your probation, I will not hesitate to make you serve the severest term possible."

Jason looked briefly back up at the judge and gave him a small nod before looking down again.

With a grimace, the judge then took off his glasses, and stared at the teenager before him, his eyes a little softer now.

"Young man, you have been given another chance here.", he said gently, "I want you to take advantage of it. You are fortunate that your victims were so willing to agree to such leniency. You owe them your thanks as it has influenced me significantly to accept this plea agreement. I truly hate to see someone with such a promising future as you have destroy himself over alcohol. And if you succeed, I think you will certainly be able to put this well behind you and lead a constructive life. I truly hope you understand that."

"Yes, your honor. I do", Jason replied very quietly.

Putting his glasses back on, the judge said, "Is there anything else?"

"No, your honor.", said Mr. Detlin.

"Then the defendant's bail is continued pursuant to the terms of the plea agreement.", he announced, slamming the gavel down, "Court is adjourned."

Jason watched the lawyers put their briefs back in their attaches as the gallery mumbled. Mostly, they were news reporters and other people he didn't know. The courtroom started to clear out, but he stood there, unmoving. A hand touched him on the shoulder and he turned to where his parents were standing behind him. He smiled a little as they embraced him with all the tenderness and love they could give him, although Jason was trying to comfort his mother more than the other way around. The courtroom emptied and they slowly turned into the aisle and walked out, heading for the front entrance of the building. Outside, Mr Bailey had stopped and was waiting for them. Jason's father shook hands with him and thanked him for his help. The defense lawyer then smiled and shook Jason's hand, wishing him good luck before walking off quickly in the direction of another courtroom. Jason watched him leave a moment, and then joined his parents again as they started home again. According to the agreement, Jason had three days to get ready. There was an alcohol rehabilitation clinic downstate to which he had to report by that time, then after that the sexual offender program.

As they walked down the hallway to the front of the building, he saw Jeremy. His friend was sitting on a bench looking nervously around. His demeanor showed relief as soon as he saw Jason, and he got up quickly and approached. Jason asked his parents to go on and get the car, and that he would be along soon. He turned to his friend.

"Well?", asked Jeremy.

"Yeah. Just as it was worked out. I got probation."

Jeremy almost swooned, "Oh. man, that is great! You must have gotten a really understanding judge, huh?"

"Yeah, something like that."

Jeremy frowned at him, wondering why he wasn't happier about it. This was the best news Jason could have received out of this whole mess.

"You okay?", he asked.

Jason stared blankly, "No, I... ...don't know."

Jeremy said, "I wish I knew what to say at a time like this, Jace. This is so crazy. I just want to scream at everybody. They took this way too far."

Jason shook his head, 'No, Jer. Don't go there again. You know how it is. I don't want any more argument about it. Let it go."

"Well, at least the judge saw it was the alcohol that did this, not you."

Jason looked at him emotionlessly, not answering.

"How long is the probation?"

"Ten years, if everything works out fine."

"Well, that doesn't sound too bad."

"Yeah, but I'll have to register as a sexual offender for life."

Jeremy's face fell, "Yeah, I know. Look, Jace, Is there something you need? Anything I can do?"

Jason glanced down, thinking and not replying for awhile, but it seemed an idea came to him and he looked back up and said, "Yeah, there is something I want you to do."

"Anything, man."

"I have a message I want you to give Tara."

Jeremy frowned, "Are you sure you want to do that, man? You're not supposed to have any contact with her, right?"

"Yeah, but I really feel the need to say this. I'm not trying to see her or anything like that. If she doesn't want to hear it, it's okay. But I need to try and say it."

I t made Jeremy uncomfortable, but he agreed, "Okay. What do you want to tell her?"

Jason stuttered through it a couple of times, but got it out. Jeremy nodded, thinking on it for a good long while. In in the end said he would do it.

"Thanks, man.", Jason said, "You really are the best friend a guy could have."

Jeremy smiled painfully, "I should have been better, man. I should have stopped you before it got this far."

Jason grinned easily at that, "No, not your fault, no way. This one is all mine. But I think I can get through it."

They stood there silently for a time. Jeremy so wanted to say something more, but couldn't think of anything that would help. Jason smiled, understanding. It was enough that Jeremy was there for him. But he had somewhere else to be now...

"Well, gotta go."

"Yeah. See you.", said Jeremy.

The two friends embraced, clapping each other on the back. Both knew it would be a long time before they would see each other again, and Jeremy gazed long and hard at his best friend's back as he left, his face expressing a look of pain and regret as Jason disappeared out the door.

Riding home in the back of his parents' car, Jason was silent. Things were going to be bad for awhile now. Strangely, it did not seem to matter much. There was still this surreal quality to it all, his mind still too far away from it. The only thing that intruded on his thoughts with regular frequency was a thing that kept nagging him ever since he learned from his lawyers about the statements that Tara and Kevin made to the judge. Tara's statement he could understand. But what she said was clearly influenced by what Kevin had said, and he was still astounded at what the 'froob' had said.

* * *

Tara rang the doorbell and waited only a short while before Dr. Warren answered the door. Upon opening it, she smiled.

"Well, hi, Tara! This is a surprise."

"Good morning, Donna. I know I should have called, but I was wondering if Kevin was home."

"No he's not. I think he's got some errands he's running around town."

"That's okay. Actually, I wanted to talk to you."

Dr. Warren's eyebrows raised slightly, looking concerned.

"Are you okay, honey? Are you having any problems from... ...that night?"

"Oh, no, Donna. It's nothing like that. I mean. I don't like to think about it, but it's not really bothering me."

"You're sure? Both Philip and I have been so worried about you."

She smiled, "No, really. I'm really fine. What I came here for was to talk to you about, uh, the future."

Donna relaxed and said, "Sure, Tara, come on in. Would you like something to drink?'

"Just some water if you have it, ma'am."

"Okay, have a seat in the living room and I'll be right back."

Tara went inside and made herself comfortable in one of the oversized love seats. Dr. Warren returned with a bottle of water and handed it to her. Tara took a small sip from it as her host settled onto the sofa.

"What is it you would like to talk about, dear?"

Tara's face became very thoughtful before she answered.

"I wanted to ask you." she said slowly, "I know that Kevin's been accepted to Dartmouth and he's heading there after graduation, and then he plans on medical school."

Donna looked at her, wondering where this was going, "Yes. That has always been his goal. Are you concerned about his leaving you here?"

"Well, yes and no."

Donna smiled sympathetically, "You can still see each other, Tara. Just because he's up there doesn't mean you have to stop being a couple. I know it would be a little harder, but it's not that far."

"But that's not really what I meant, ma'am.", interrupted Tara.

The older woman relaxed and waited for her to finish.

"What I want to ask you about is... ...medical school."

"Medical school?", Donna asked, "Do you mean which one Kevin's going to attend? Well, he plans on Johns Hopkins, but that's some years away yet before we have to worry about that."

"Yes, ma'am, but no, that's not what I'm asking."

Donna pursed her lips and said, "I'm sorry dear. I seem to be jumping to conclusions. What is it you want to ask?"

"I wanted to ask about me, uh, when he goes to medical school."

Donna Warren looked at her with wide eyes. This was unexpected.

"Tara, how long have you been thinking about this?"

"A few weeks."

A look of sudden surprise came into Donna Warren's eyes as she gasped, "Has he asked you?"

"No!", Tara answered quickly, "No. At least not yet."

Tentatively, Donna went on.

"And if he does, how would you answer?"

Tara half expected that question. She could always expect Donna to be direct and to the point.

She smirked, slightly embarrassed as she answered, "Well, you do mean if he ever gets around to asking me to marry him."

Donna chuckled throatily at that.

"Oh, I'm sure it will take a while.", she replied, "I had to kick start his father to get him to ask me, and believe me, my son is definitely a chip off the old block."

Tara laughed briefly, then turned serious again, "Then yeah. I'm pretty sure I'll answer yes."

Donna Warren's face turned soft and her eyes began to water as she got up and went to Tara, gathering her in a long hug.

"I'm _so_ glad to hear it, Tara.", she said kissing her on the cheek, "But I think where you kids are concerned, it wouldn't hurt to wait a bit."

Tara replied with assurance, "Oh, yeah! There's no hurry on that."

"But you're sure about this?"

"Yeah, I'm sure. But it's like you say. We're still so young and a wedding would be some time away. That's all."

Donna smiled as they sat down again, greatly pleased, "I am so happy for you two. And what are your plans? What would you do?"

"To be honest, I haven't made up my mind. I am looking at nursing school."

Donna gasped happily, "That's wonderful, Tara! That shouldn't be a problem for you!"

Tara smiled with her, slightly embarrassed, "Well, I had always liked the idea of being able to help people when they're sick, especially kids. Kevin's always said I'd be great at it."

"I agree completely! You are a remarkably intelligent young lady and I think you're quite capable of doing it."

"Thanks.", Tara replied appreciatively, "But the reason I really wanted to talk was that I wanted to find out what it's going to be like for him in medical school. I mean, what's life as a medical student, as a doctor going to be like? If I'm going to be there with him, I wanted to know."

"Of course, dear."

"I do think being a doctor is definitely a really cool thing."

"And the money's not bad either, huh?"

"Yeah, I guess so, but that's not what I meant."

"Good.", Donna responded, "Because I want to make something clear here. Financially, you can see that Kevin's father and I do quite well in our jobs. But we're not rich. There are some people out there who think that every doctor is rich beyond words, which of course isn't true. We're upper middle class and that is advantageous, but we still have to watch the money closely. There are some physicians who have gotten rich off of their work, but very few. The vast majority of us still have to work hard to make ends meet.

"My point is that for anyone who wants to be a doctor, he shouldn't do it for the money. Because I assure you, it isn't worth it. I know pediatricians and family practice docs for example who are out there struggling and barely making house payments, much less the other bills."

Tara frowned, "Wow! I didn't know a doctor would have that problem. Aren't a doctor's earnings some of the highest you can make?"

"For most of us, that's true. But it's not that simple. Kevin's father has a good way of putting it. He says that we make a lot of money. We just don't get to keep it. It's hard when you have so much overhead and other expenses, especially malpractice insurance. It seems everybody connected to us has their hands in the till for some reason, be it dues, memberships, whatever. For example, you know Kevin's dad is a neurosurgeon. But to practice that specialty, he has to pay a premium of about $125,000 a year for his malpractice."

Tara's eyes went wide, "What? No way! Is that true?"

"Oh, yes, dear, it's true. I'm an internist who doesn't do procedures, and my malpractice premium is still close to thirty thousand a year all by itself."

"Gosh, how do you even make a living?'

Dr. Warren smiled a little sourly, "We manage, usually by putting in the time and seeing the patients, but it is a hassle. Now that leads me to the next question. Let me pose a situation to you. Suppose that you are married to a doctor."

She smiled surreptitiously at her as she said it. Tara giggled in return as she continued.

"Anyway, what about the fact that you're going to have to share him with all his patients? There are going to be times when he is on call and has to leave the house to take care of somebody in the middle of the night, right when you need him the most for whatever problem you may be having. It may be the kids are screaming and you're left alone with them, and when he comes back he may just be too tired to pay you enough attention to help out. And that may be an ongoing thing over time. Can you deal with that?"

Tara's eyebrows furrowed in concentration, seriously listening to the older woman.

"Even more so, look at it from his point of view.", continued Donna, "Let's say that you are the doctor. As a woman, when you are away from your husband and he has to take care of the kids and the usual domestic duties, and then you come back and you are too tired to pay attention to them, then can you accept that and deal with it? Can you accept that so much of your life is spent on your profession and not with your family? Can your husband accept you doing that? A lot of spouses can't. Doctors usually work very long hours. So you can see from that side of the equation how it can be."

Tara stared at her, quietly assimilating all this new information.

"The point is that in becoming a physician, depending on the type of specialty, there are usually sacrifices to family life that may have to be made to get the job done. Not everyone can do that, though I have no doubts about Kevin."

"Yes, ma'am", Tara replied quietly, "I see what you mean."

"The third thing I want to point out is that face of medicine is changing. In twenty years time, it's going to be completely different because the economics are going to force it to change. It may not be what you see it being this day. So tomorrow's doctors are going to have to be able to adapt. Do you know what I mean by socialized medicine?"

"Yes, we actually discussed that in school last year in social studies."

"Then you have some idea of the changes that may be coming. I don't know if it will come to that, but I do think it likely. In any case, I'm sure it will be some system that will allow the uninsured to receive care, but the downside is that health care is going to be rationed, and it's going to be hard for the public to accept that, not to mention the doctors. It'll take time."

Tara swallowed another sip of water.

"Gosh, I didn't know so much was involved. Kevin definitely gets his smarts from you."

"So I keep telling his father, but he refuses to believe me.", she said, chuckling.

Laughing with her, Tara replied, "I see I have a lot to think about, more than I originally thought."

"I'm glad you asked, honey. Of course, we've had these same discussions with Kevin, and he is comfortable with his decision. But I think the bottom line is this. Anyone who wants to be a physician has to do it because he loves doing it. It's as simple as that. Otherwise, with all the stresses and responsibilities, it isn't worth spending your life trying to do something like that if you don't enjoy the work no matter how much money you might make. If you can work that out, the rest will usually fall into place. I know Kevin has no problem with that. He's had his mind made up since he was twelve. But the woman he spends his life with is going to have to understand some of the necessary sacrifices he has to make to do it."

Tara nodded her head in deep thought, trying to put all it all together in her head.

"Does that answer your question?"

Tara eyed her and replied, "Yeah, I think it does. You really have given me a lot to think about, Donna, and I really appreciate you telling me. In fact, it's helped me make up my mind about a lot of things. But now, I guess I better get going. I'm expected home soon."

She got up to go to the door and Donna accompanied her.

"I understand. I'll tell Kevin you came by."

"Thanks for everything."

"Okay, Tara. I'm sure I'll see you later."

Tara smiled gratefully at her as she went out the front. "Me, too. Bye."

* * *

Kevin rang the doorbell and waited only a short while before Mrs. Monroe answered the door. Her face lit up when she saw him.

"Hi Kevin! Come on in."

"Thanks, Jill. Is Tara home?"

"Actually, she's not. I sent her on a errand."

"Good timing, then. I came for the Box. If the display's going to be ready in time for Memorial Day, I'll need to get it today. The Tri-City tournament is coming this weekend and I'll be pretty busy then."

"Oh my gosh, yes.", Jill said with a thoughtful expression, "I'd almost forgotten. Tara's been so nervous about that."

"She's going to do fine. She's turned into great player."

"Yes, I think she'll love the competition. Now remember I told you there was something I thought you should add to the display?'

"Uh-huh."

"Well, it's upstairs in the attic. I've kept it up there because in the past, the sight of it would upset Tara. But I think it's probably about time we brought it out and let it be shown now."

She led him through the foyer up the stairs and turned to the right, towards the master bedroom area. In the hallway ceiling, there was an attic door, a pull down unit. She gently yanked it open, unfolded the stairs, and started climbing up with Kevin following. When she stepped onto the attic floor, she reached over and flipped on a light switch. Kevin saw that the attic space was chocked full of boxes and assorted other accumulated possessions, all of it heavily covered in dust. She walked towards one stack and looked at the top one, verifying the writing on top. Then she pulled it down onto the floor and opened it up. There were various bits of paraphernalia that came out of it such as an old pair of glasses, a couple of books, a well worn bible, some other mementos, a couple of folders, some old style fountain ink pens, and other desktop knickknacks. Finally, she reached down on the bottom and pulled out what she was looking for. It was a thick bundle of cloth wrapped in paper, shaped in a triangle. Kevin knew what it was even as she pulled it out.

"That's the flag your father had on his casket, right?"

She smiled as she unwrapped it partially and showed him, "Yes. I always wanted to put it in some kind of display case. But right after Dad died, it upset Tara so much when she saw it, I just had to put it away. She really was so heartbroken then, losing her grandfather like that. But now, she's older and I think she understands better. It's time for it to come out again, to be seen and appreciated, and this display case for her grandfather's things is the perfect place for it."

Kevin smiled back, "You're right. It's perfect."

Folding it back up in the paper, she handed the flag to Kevin.

"You take care of that."

"Oh, I will, Mrs. Monroe. You can depend on me."

"I know I can.", she replied, still smiling.

She started to put back the rest of her father's things back in the box and Kevin bent down to help her. He grabbed one of the folders which had some papers in it and as he handed it back to her some of the papers fell out. Quickly, he put the flag down and began gathering them back up.

"Sorry about that."

"It's okay. There was nothing of any real importance in those papers that we had to take care of after he was gone. And I haven't gone through them since. It was too traumatic for us at the time."

"Yeah. I understand.", Kevin said, "I was twelve when my Grandfather Guberman passed on, and I remember how my father was. It was rough on him, too."

As he shuffled the papers together to give back to her, an envelope stuck out and Kevin pulled it free and placed it on top of the stack. He was holding it out to her when he noticed the writing on it.

It said, "_To my princess._"

Catching his attention, Kevin looked at it closer. There was a date written beneath those words, and the hand writing was by the same hand that wrote the date written on the castle picture of the Box. The envelope was a little yellowed, but it was not sealed as the flap was folded into the envelope, and it definitely contained some papers.

"Uh, Mrs. Monroe, do you know what this is?"

Jill Monroe took the envelope and frowned as she read the front.

She softly gasped, covering her mouth with her hand.

"Oh my God, Kevin. This was just a few days before he died. This was in that folder?"

"Yes, ma'am."

"I never saw this. He must have written it and put it in there without telling us."

She held the envelope, indecision on her face.

"He probably thought you would find it eventually. Do you think you should read it?", he asked.

Unsure, she did not immediately answer, looking at the envelope and then at him, before making the decision...

"No, it's for her. I'm sure she will treasure it, as she does all things from her grandfather. In fact, it might be a good idea to put it in the display case, too."

Kevin thought about that.

"Okay, I think I know how to do it."

He carefully opened the envelope flap and gently pulled apart the leafs of the sheets inside. There were only two sheets there. Satisfied, he again folded the envelope flap into place.

"These are standard eight and a half by eleven sheets. There are only two, so I can make room for them to be included. I can do it a way such that there will be enough space. When we give the display case."

"When you give it, you mean.", she said.

"No, ma'am.", he replied gently, but firmly, "This is a joint venture between you and me."

She smiled back at him, "Okay. Then it's both of us."

"So when we give her the case, then you can give her the letter. Once she's read it, and if it's okay with her, then I'll put the letter into the case."

Satisfied, she put the envelope into her pocket and finished putting the rest of the things into the box, returning it to its stack. She led the way again downstairs after turning out the light. Closing the attic door, they went to Tara's room, where she pulled out the Box from under the bed and gave it to Kevin. He took it and the flag, holding onto them carefully with near reverence as they went downstairs.

At the door, Kevin turned back to her and said, "I think this will be ready in about a week or so. I've got some friends in shop class that I've talked to about making the case. They already have the dimensions laid out already, but it won't be hard to adjust them to fit the flag and the letter into it."

"That should give us another week more before Memorial Day. Good.", she said.

"I was thinking." said Kevin, "Don't you think that wall next to her door would the perfect place for it? That's where she'll always be able to see it when she goes to bed at night."

"Yes, Kevin. It's perfect."

"Great!", he replied, smiling broadly, "When I get the case done, I'll let you know."

"Good.", Jill said, "I'll keep the letter safe until then. And Kevin."

"Yes, Mrs. Monroe?"

Jill took the boy in her arms and hugged him dearly.

"Thanks so much for this. I really appreciate what you're doing for Tara."

Trying to hide his reddened face as much as could when she released him, Kevin just smiled back.

"Believe me, It's totally my pleasure, Jill, really.", he stuttered.

She laughed, shaking her head at his discomfiture.

**Thanks for reading and reviewing. I hope to have the next chapter out in a just a few days**.


	14. Chapter 13

**Author's Note: We now come full circle to where the entire story began in the prologue, and follow the tournament to its conclusion. You will also see a little more involvement from Kim and Ron in this chapter. And there is a surprise at the end. However, this is not the end of my tale, for there are yet two more chapters and an epilogue. There are still some loose ends to tie up, and a letter.**

**For the chess aficianados who wish to follow the game, the inital board position is listed below for you to set up and follow along if you wish. I have depicted the endgame of one of the most famous games played which helped elevate the great 19th century American Grandmaster Paul Morphy to be recognized as the first unofficial World Champion before Wilhelm Steinitz formally took the title several years later. Remember that the little 'cross' sign indicates the King is in check.**

**Enjoy...**

**Board position:**

White:

King at King Knight One

Queen at Queen Rook Six

Rooks at King Bishop One and Queen Rook Four

Knights at King Bishop Three and Queen Rook Three

Pawns at Queen Rook Two, Queen Knight Four, King Bishop Two, King Knight Two, and King Rook Two.

Black:

King at King Knight One

Queen at King Knight Three

Rooks at King One and King Three

Bishops at Queen Two and Queen Knight Three

Pawns at Queen Rook Two, Queen Bishop Two, Queen Bishop Three, King Bishop Two, King Knight Two, and King Rook Two.

**Chapter Thirteen**

**The Queen's Victory**

'We really have come so far this last year', Kevin thought again as he watched Tara in deep concentration, playing for the championship. 'It's only been a year, yet a lifetime, too.'

He smiled to himself as his love aggressively played the gambit her opponent had mistakenly thought she would timidly avoid, throwing that challenge right back in his teeth. Tara sat forward in her chair, elbows on the table and hands clasped in front of her. She loomed over the chessboard with her index fingers steeplechased under that shapely nose of hers. She scanned the chessboard scrupulously yet one more time as Kevin and the rest of team stood close by, trying to analyze the game and guess what her next move was. The red haired kid from Upperton was similarly engrossed, a worried look on his face. After the rook move to the queen file, she had unleashed a merciless attack on him with rapid fire exchanges which put him badly out of position. She had managed to take out his bishops in exchange for her knights, and now his queen side assault had been trashed into nothing more than pieces scattered over the wrong side of the board while her own were aimed directly at his castled king. She was a pawn ahead and clearly in control of the game. He fidgeted, frantically trying to find a weakness somewhere that he could exploit.

The white king was castled with the three king side pawns in front of him, the rook beside him in the standard formation. His knight was at bishop three, having just taken the black knight that had captured his bishop there. His queen was roaming way out at queen rook six, blocked by the black bishop at queen knight six which was protected by two pawns. His opponent's queen was at King Bishop six and her rooks were at King Eight and King Six. The other black bishop which roamed the white squares was at Queen Seven. They were all perfectly poised to kill his king.

The kid pushed his thick rimmed glasses up his nose again, the sweat running down his brow making them slip even more. The cheerleader hadn't moved an inch, staring at the board, motionless in that position for more than ten minutes, her eyes darting here, there, assessing, calculating. One more time he went through the possible moves that she could try. Still, so far, for everything he could see she could do, he still had a defense worked out. He let out a soft exasperated sigh, irritated that she was dragging this out. The waiting was always the worst part.

Tara remained completely still until he did that. She looked up at him with those electric blue eyes of hers. He had to admit they were gorgeous. Thankfully, it wasn't affecting how he played, not that it mattered at this point. She stared at him a few seconds, then looked back down at the board.

"She's got him.", whispered Kevin to Paul Gertz, who stood beside him.

"How?", he asked, "I'm not seeing it."

"Oh, it's there", Kevin said, "I just can't quite recognize it, but..."

"Are you sure? How is she doing it?"

Kevin grinned lopsidedly and shook his head slightly.

"I don't know how, yet.", he said musingly, "But I know it'll be classy."

It had been twelve minutes since Tara's opponent made his last move, twelve minutes the red headed kid waited in pure frustration for her to respond.

Finally, Tara carefully unfolded her hands and reached for the board. She picked up her queen and moved it forward towards the knight at King Bishop Six. Picking up the enemy knight, she replaced it with her queen onto the same square, and then reached over and punched the time clock with the captured piece.

Her queen was now subject to being taken by the knight pawn.

"She's sacrificing the queen!", Paul exclaimed in a hushed whisper.

The entire room erupted into frantic mumbling and whispers as Tara leaned back, relaxing into her chair and taking a deep breath. She looked at Kevin, flashing him a quick smile. Kevin gazed wide-eyed at her, eyebrows furrowed in deep thought. Seeing his surprise, she smiled widely and softly laughed to herself, though not so loud her opponent could hear her. Kevin kept looking back and forth between the board and her beaming face, until it finally hit him. He chuckled softly, his face breaking into a wide smile of its own.

"What is it?", asked Paul.

"Oooohhhh, yeah.", said Kevin, now grinning like the Cheshire Cat, "Classy doesn't even begin to describe how good this is."

"Hey, G-man, clue us in!", piped in Dave Ponder, crowding around Kevin with the rest of the team, "What's she doing?"

Kevin nodded contentedly, the pride showing in his stance. Tara grinned even wider, seeing he understood now what she was doing.

"Louis Paulsen versus Paul Morphy.", Kevin said to his buddies, "The challenge match in New York, 1857."

They stared at the board in wonderment, all except Sergei, who also smiled in understanding, a slow mirth erupting from his throat.

"I agree, Kevin. Magnificently done. I still say she must have some Russian blood in her somewhere."

"You wish!", retorted Kevin playfully.

Sergei laughed a little harder.

"But that Paulsen/Morphy game was a Four Knights opening, wasn't it?", asked Jermaine.

"Absolutely.", said Kevin, still with that dangerous smile on his face, "And look at how she managed to manipulate him into the same trap."

The red haired kid's face reflected the shock of realizing exactly what Kevin had seen. Of all the possibilities he had anticipated, the queen sacrifice did not occur to him. As he looked back and forth between his pieces and Tara, the consternation in his face only grew as he realized he had no choice. He had to take the queen. If he didn't, he would be materially behind by a knight and a pawn, which was a virtual death sentence at this level of play. But doing so exposed his king to attack. Still, he simply had no other viable options. He picked up Tara's queen and replaced it with his knight pawn, then punched the time clock.

Tara leaned forward, looking like a crouching tiger ready to pounce, her attention completely riveted back to the board, intent on snaring her prey. There was no escape for him now. The moves would be forced, and she knew she would be able to end this quickly.

19) ... ... ... ...R-N3†

20) K-R1... ...B-R6

The bishop move attacked the rook and he was forced to move it or lose it. He could not afford any further material loss. But it was leaving his king open to further multiple attacks.

21) R-Q1... ...B-N7†

22) K-N1... ...BxP†

23) K-B1... ...B-N7†

24) K-N1... ...B-R6†

25) K-R1... ...BxP

Tara began to close the trap, bringing the other bishop into play. This was where she made up for the sacrifice of the queen. The only way White could avoid checkmate was to sacrifice his own.

26) Q-B1... ...BxQ

27) RxB... ...R-K7

28) N-QB2... ...R-R3

The red headed kid shook his head, exasperated. His remaining pieces were cooped up on the queen side and blocked by his own pawns.

29) P-N5... ...B-N6

It was over. The last fortress pawn on the rook file was pinned and could not capture the bishop now attacking it, and it was now attacked by the two rooks as well and soon would be lost on the next move. His rook was helpless at King Bishop One. Everything else was on the other side of the board. It was checkmate in three moves at the most and there was nothing he could do to stop it.

Calmly, the red headed kid reached up and pushed his glasses back up the bridge of his nose one last time and looked across the board at Tara, who returned that look at him just as serenely as when she accepted the gambit in the beginning. Both knew the end had come. Slowly, he reached over and tipped his king over in resignation as the room burst into applause. Grinning widely, Kevin clapped loudly along with everyone else as Tara stood up and offered her hand to her opponent, who in turn shook it gently with a limp smile, clearly disappointed but gracious in defeat. Tara turned and started walking through the applauding crowd as gracefully as she could towards Kevin. Despite everything that could have distracted her just then, all of the well wishers, the congratulators, her team mates, her eyes saw nothing but him. As she got closer, she started to hurry. Ten steps away and unable to contain herself further, she broke into a run and hurled herself into his arms, squealing in pure pleasure as he laughed joyfully along with her.

Everyone crowded around, offering their congratulations as Kevin lifted her up in the air, hugged her tight, and swung her around in sheer enjoyment. He then let her back down as the crowd descended on her, where she finally was willing to acknowledge them. Letting go of Kevin, she shook everyone's hands, thanking them, including the players of the other teams as they also came up and met her. Pure joy shined from her face as she greeted all the people who offered their praise and support. It lasted several minutes before the crowd began to thin out. That was when the tournament chairman rapped a clipboard on a table to get everyone's attention, announcing that the awards ceremony would soon take place in the next room where the dais was set up, and asking everyone to move there at this time. As everyone began to move in that direction, he also asked that the top three finishers and the advisors join him on stage.

A couple more well wishers lingered to talk to her, then finally moved off with the rest of the crowd as it migrated completely into the next room. Tara took advantage of the lull, swiftly grabbing Kevin's hand and pulling him in the other direction around a corner where no one could see them. She took him in her arms and solidly kissed him long and hard. She only stopped when he started giggling..

"Whoa, Tara!", he laughed after catching his breath, "It's okay! You did great!"

"Great?", she cried, "Are you _kidding _me? This is_ so_ beyond great, there aren't words to describe it! This is just incredible! Unbelievable! Impossible! All because of you!"

She kissed him over and over again in rapid succession, saying "I love you!" between each one.

Kevin kept laughing, accepting each kiss as it came.

"I told you! You could do it!", he finally said when he was able to get a word in edgewise.

The widest smile possible on her face, she beamed at him in sheer pleasure and adoration of him as she replied, "Yeah, BF, you certainly did."

"And you know, anything is really possible for you.", he said, "Kim doesn't hold a monopoly on that. You really can do anything."

"You are _so_ right.", she sighed softly, basking in the joy of the moment, "I can. But only because you were the one who showed me how."

Her eyes glowing, she wrapped her arms around his neck again and leaned in towards him, but was stopped briefly by his index finger softly against her lips.

Kevin replied, "and I love you, too... ...by the way.", then he kissed her with every ounce of his soul.

* * *

"Come on, Ron! We'll be late."

"Where's Tara and Kevin?", he asked, as they hurried toward the motel convention center where the chess tournament was being held.

"Depends on if the tournament is over.", Kim answered, "If we're lucky, we haven't missed the awards ceremony. I hope they won. The rest of the squad should be there now."

"Including Bonnie?"

"_So_ not counting on it!", she muttered sourly, "Especially after everything that's happened."

"Figures.", Ron replied just as grumpily as they entered the main entrance.

As soon as they got inside, the Kimmunicator went off.

"Oh, no. Not now.", she muttered as she pulled it out and turned it on, "What up, Wade?"

"Kim, I've been going over some satellite data looking for Drakken. I think I've found something. It's pretty serious."

"Where?"

"Looks like Africa."

"Africa? What's there?"

"It's called the Temple of the Tempus Simia."

Kim and Ron gazed at each other, their faces going pale. Kim looked back to the Kimmunicator.

"Definitely targetish!", she said worriedly, "That's got to be where they're going. How soon do we need to go?"

"We've got a little time. I don't have all the data yet. But from what I've found out there's an important ceremony that has to be performed to activate the idol in some way in the near future. I still have more research to do. But if I'm right, I believe the critical date for that ceremony is still a week away or so. I'll let you know when I get it all together."

Kim nodded, "Okay, Wade. Keep me informed."

"Kim! Wait! That's not the only reason I called you now."

She frowned at the view screen.

"Yes?"

"I was going over photos from one of our satellites flying over the African continent. There's data from it that goes back for weeks. It also flies over the US. In fact, Middleton is directly in its path, and it overflew Middleton the night Tara was attacked."

Kim felt a cold shiver go through her.

"Show me what you have, Wade."

"First, let me clue you in. The cloud cover from the storm socked the city in pretty good, but it started to clear later that night and there were good shots taken of the area. Specifically, I was able to get a look at some of the cars around the area of the park where she was attacked. This is something you should see."

A satellite image of the middle of North America appeared on the view screen. In steps, it began to zoom in by factors of three, gradually focusing on the middle of the US, then Colorado, and then a medium sized city in the northwest area. The images continued to zoom in until individual buildings, trees, and homes enlarged enough to be recognized. The park close to Kevin's house soon was visible in the center, starting to fill the screen up until at one point the image veered off to one side, bringing a line of parked cars into view. The progressive enlargement of the images continued until there was one white luxury convertible sedan in full view taking up most of the screen. Wade continued to manipulate the image until the view centered upon the license plate.

It read "BNIE1"

Kim gasped, her eyes wide open.

"You see, Kim?", said Wade, "This shot was taken about twenty minutes before Tara was attacked. The timing is perfect."

"Oh my gosh. She was there.", Kim said numbly.

Ron stared at the view screen, a dawning look coming over his face. He gazed in stunned silence at Kim.

"It was _her_!", he said in shock, "_She_ shot the video!"

"But why?", she asked, wide eyed, "Was she in on it? Did she?... ...No! No way! I do _not_ believe Bonnie intended for Tara to be attacked! She's not that twisted!"

"Then why, Kim?", Ron asked, "What was she trying to do? What was she wanting to show on the tape?"

Kim rubbed her chin, thinking furiously, then it dawned on her.

"She... ...Obviously, she wanted to get something on tape.", she theorized, deep in thought, "It might be... ...Maybe she was trying to catch Kevin and Jason fighting, maybe to try and prove Kevin was actually the one starting the fights, not Jason."

"But we know that's whack!", Ron argued.

"But Bonnie may have believed it, Ron! Maybe, maybe she wanted to prove it to Tara."

He hesitated. That actually seemed to make sense to him.

"Then she set the whole thing up!", Ron said, getting angry, "Somehow, she was able to get Jason to go after Kevin! She set it up and knew where! It's her fault Tara got attacked!"

He was really cranked now, looking around for the small chance Bonnie was going to show.

"Oh, she's going to answer for that one.", he muttered harshly.

"Hold up, Ron!", Kim said, grabbing hold of his arm, "Look! You're probably right. But think about this. If she did do this, then she went there hoping to have evidence of a fight trying to prove Jason was innocent of that first time he went after Kevin."

"Totally!", he replied in a hot temper.

"But see what happened, Ron! What she taped was something she probably didn't expect, and in fact surprised and traumatized her almost as much."

He looked puzzled, thinking that over, "So, that's why she knew about the attack the day after."

"Yeah, and why she was so upset. Remember how she walked out of the gym when Tara came in?"

"Yeah."

"Ron, Bonnie didn't mean for Tara to get attacked. I think that was the furthest thing from her mind."

He paused, nodding as he thought it through.

"Okay, I can see where you're coming from. But it's still her fault. She really should pay for what she did, Kim."

"Oh, I think she did, at least partially."

"Huh? How?"

"She had to be the one who turned the tape into the police."

Ron's head snapped back, realizing Kim was right.

"That's got to be it.", he said, "Okay, so I guess that makes up for it, a little. What are you going to do about it?"

"I'll talk to her about it, tell her I know.", Kim thought out loud, "Then we'll see."

"I still think she should at least apologize to Tara", he replied firmly.

"Yes.", Kim said, agreeing, "But this is Bonnie we're talking about, you know?. It may take her a while before she's able to do that, if ever."

"Huh!", Ron, snorted in disbelief, "_As if_. It sure doesn't look like she feels that sorry for what she did."

"Maybe, maybe not, Ron. You see, I was going to go see Bonnie anyway about something I never thought she would ever do. But now I think I know why she did it."

"What do you mean, Kim?"

"You know that Bonnie hasn't been showing up for cheer practice."

"I thought she was just avoiding Tara.", he said.

"Yeah, but there's more to it than that.", Kim mused, "You know that she told everyone all that guff about how she was too busy to practice because she had to take time off to visit college campuses?"

"Right. So?"

"That's not exactly what happened. I just found out from administration that Bonnie quit the Middleton Cheer Squad altogether."

* * *

There was another enthusiastic round of clapping as the tournament chairman formally made the announcement that the trophies and awards for the Tri-City Chess championship had been decided and the presentations were about to be made. He spoke from behind a podium on a temporary dais at one end of the hotel ballroom as strobes flashed and cameras clicked away. The large hall was packed with people despite its size, including players, families, friends, and the press. Although the chairman was somewhat nervous at the unusual amount of attention being paid to the tournament by the news media, and a crowd that was much larger than anything the tournament had ever experienced before, he was clearly enjoying the limelight. And as an aficionado of the game himself, he was highly pleased at the attention his favorite past time was now getting from so many others.

Three players sat on the dais with the chairman along with their two faculty advisors. The other faculty advisor from Lowerton High also sat with them. The rest of the contestants stood off to either side in rapt attention, away from the main crowd in front. The chairman tapped on the microphone to signal for quiet and the noise hushed down gently over the next few seconds.

"Ladies and gentlemen.", he started.

He was interrupted by a commotion at the door to the ballroom as two young teens entered as silently and surreptitiously as they could. But when the media was around, there was no way Kim Possible could ever enter a room without them starting to snap pictures and trying to interview her. A loud hub-bub arose and it took a minute or two for Kim to shake them off, quickly explaining she was only there to support her squad mate and asking the reporters and cameramen to concentrate on that. Once they saw she was not willing to talk, and of course having snapped enough pictures of her, they returned their attention to the front and quieted back down. Kim and Ron hurried to join the rest of the cheer squad in the audience, smiling and waving excitedly to Tara on the stage as they did. Tara smiled and waved back. Quiet restored, the tournament director cleared his throat once more.

"Ladies and gentlemen.", he began again, "It is my distinct pleasure to present to you the final tally and results of this year's Tri-City Chess Tournament. I would like to say that in the twenty-three years that I have hosted this event, this is the first time I have ever had the pleasure to announce the tournament results to such a large and enthusiastic crowd as well as the news media."

A round of applause followed and the chairman held up his hands to signal them to let him continue.

"You may know already, but I will explain how this is done. Simply said, there are two categories of competition. The first category is the team competition, with the teams representing their respective high schools. The second category is the individual competition with all the players competing for the individual tri-city championship. Wins count for one point. Draws count as a half-point. Losses get no points. That is as simple as it gets. Therefore, without any further ado, I would like to announce the team championship trophies first."

He cleared his throat and went on.

"To begin, with a total score of 24½ points, the third place trophy goes to Lowerton High School."

There was another round of applause as the Lowerton advisor came up from the crowd and accepted the trophy from him. He smiled out to the crowd and thanked them before heading back to his seat. The chairman congratulated him, clapping for him as well for a moment before turning back to the microphone.

"Next, with a total of 26 points, the second place trophy is awarded to Upperton High School."

A more vigorous clapping quickly drowned out the cameras taking pictures as Upperton's advisor came up and received the award, smiling as he held it up to the crowd. He stayed long enough for the crowd to get their fill, then also sat back down. The chairman continued on, this time smiling broadly.

"And with a total of 27½ points, and for the first time in Tri-city history with a third consecutive championship, the first place trophy goes to Middleton High School!"

The crowd erupted into a loud roar as Mr. Amberson arose from his seat, a huge grin on his face. As the whistles and cheers sounded through the air, he was given the trophy by the smiling chairman, and then presented it to the crowd, pumping it up and down above him in his hands to the wild approval of the audience. The cameramen continued to busily snap pictures of him as he displayed the glittering trophy to the people. Clapping vigorously, the chairman returned to the podium as the advisor sat back down with his prize, reaching over and shaking the hands of the two MHS student players who were there with him. The applause continued for some time, but finally, once the noise had quieted down again, the chairman cleared his throat and proceeded.

"And now, ladies and gentlemen, without further delay, I would like to present the individual trophies. To start, in third place, with a total of 5½ points, from Upperton High School, Mr. Reginald Cockcroft!"

The red headed kid reached up and pushed his coke bottle lenses back up on his nose as he rose up, a slight grin on his face. He waved to his team mates at the side of the podium amidst the clapping and noise they made for him, then turned and waved to the crowd in acceptance of their response. He walked up to the podium and shook the hand of the chairman, accepting his trophy without further exuberance and returning to his seat in short order.

The chairman then said, "This is a real pleasure for me to present this next award to this very talented young man, who I had fully expected to repeat his exemplary performance from last year's tournament."

A slight giggling ran through the crowd as he turned and looked quizzically back at the object of his remarks, smiling playfully, but the boy only grinned back contentedly after a quick look at the girl at his side.

"But I can see he's not at all displeased with today's results. Therefore, our next recipient, in second place with 6 points, last year's defending champion from Middleton High School, Mr. Kevin Guberman!"

The crowd erupted again, the mostly Middleton High gathering yelling in appreciation of their 'native son', as Kevin rose from his seat with a huge grin on his face, waving at everyone there as the girl sitting next to him clapped more enthusiastically for him than anyone. He walked up to the chairman who handed him his trophy and shook his hand firmly. Kevin held the trophy up to the audience and received another loud ovation as whistles and calls of 'Way to go, Kevin!' and 'Middleton High rules!' rang out from them. His parents were in the back, yelling and cheering louder than anyone. He continued to show them the trophy for a good thirty seconds until the noise finally died down, which it did when the chairman again approached the podium. It very quickly went quiet in anticipation of the giving of the last trophy. Kevin sat down by the girl whose smile for him was bigger than anyone else's there. He turned to her and held out his hand, and she grabbed it in response, giving it a big squeeze.

It was dead calm now, the only noise an occasional camera clicking off a picture or a nervous cough. The tension had ratcheted up yet another notch. The relative silence only augmented the momentousness of the occasion.

"And now, ladies and gentlemen.", the chairman began quietly and thoughtfully, "In a first of firsts for me in my tenure as the chairman of this tournament, I now present to you the tournament champion. But before I do, I just want to say this. I have always considered the game of chess, as far as I am concerned at least, the greatest game ever invented. But as grand as it is, it has always been a game primarily played by men, rarely enjoyed by women despite many efforts to rectify that situation by both sexes. It is true, I am glad to say, that over the past fifty years, we have seen significant progress in bringing more women into the game, a good number of them to grandmaster level. But it is also true that they still have a long way to go to achieve parity with the men in the sport. However, it is now with the greatest of pleasure that I do this. I can say that I am proud, very proud, to be a part of the latest contribution to that effort here today.

"This is the first time I will have the honor, the privilege, and the extreme pleasure of presenting the championship trophy not only to a member of the fairer sex, but one whose obvious beauty is so excellently complimented by the brilliant play that has most certainly earned her this well deserved award today!"

The crowd woke up with a clamor, and Tara sat there stunned, her face turning every shade of red possible. Kevin stood up and clapped wildly. Slowly, Reginald also rose and applauded, a grin spreading across his face. The advisors all joined him and soon nobody was sitting except her, the roar of their shouts and applause surrounding her.

Speaking loudly above the crowd's adoration which would not be quieted now, the chairman yelled, "With 6½ points! This year's Tri-City Chess Tournament champion! Miss! Tara! Monroe!"

The crowd exploded again enthusiastically with their applause and yells as the news photographers snapped their pictures furiously, the flashes from the cameras so numerous it was like a malfunctioning strobe light in a disco had popped out of the ceiling. Truly embarrassed by this overwhelming display, Tara stood up slowly and timidly glided over to the chairman who energetically shook her hand in both of his before bringing it up to his lips and kissing it as a gesture of his admiration. This brought even more of a roar from the crowd as he let go, took the trophy from the nearby table, and graciously presented it to her. Still red as the proverbial beet, Tara could only smile as she awkwardly accepted the large, bulky trophy into her arms. She clutched it clumsily to herself as she turned back to the crowd's adoration and looked out at them, too shocked to know what to do except stand there and continue smiling.

In the back, she saw her parents standing and clapping their hearts out. Her father had a huge grin, putting his index fingers in either side of his mouth and shrilling a loud whistle before returning to his boisterous clapping and yelling "That's my girl!", her mother, tears in her eyes, jumping up and down beside him and screaming her pleasure. The Gubermans were next to them, yelling and clapping just as enthusiastically. And next to them was _Abo_, calmly leaning over his walker and gently clapping his hands, the biggest smile on his face she had ever seen. Closer in, she could see the rest of the cheer squad crying out and clapping for their team mate. Kim was there with them, grinning hugely, Ron right beside her, both yelling and applauding between rounds of "Go, Mad Dogs!" by the entire squad. The only one missing was Bonnie, and of course that did not bother her in the slightest.

The spectacle went on for several minutes as Tara stood there and thanked everybody over and over. Somebody started yelling, "Speech! Speech!", and the call was taken up by everyone in the crowd. Tara's eyes became wide with apprehension, shaking her head vigorously even as she smiled, her face turning red again.

"Speech!", they kept shouting, clapping wildly and reiterating it until she had to relent.

"Okay! Okay!", she retorted back graciously, still exasperated, "But you really asked for it now!"

There was a short ripple of laughter as she awkwardly put the trophy down on the ground, the glittering behemoth of gilt plastic and metal standing almost up to her shoulder in height. She timidly took the microphone off the stand and stood there as the noise and the clapping started to abate. When it had finally quieted down, gripping the microphone anxiously, she started anxiously, softly 'hemming' and 'hawing'...

"Uh... ...yeah, well... ..._*ahem*_... ...uh, thank you... ...everyone...", she mumbled, "Uh... ...thank you... ...I... ...I really don't know what to say, I guess."

She paused a few seconds more before going on, firmly gathering her thoughts into something cohesive to say before she looked completely idiotic.

"I... ...This is so incredible to me. I had never thought that I could ever do something like this, and you can't imagine how happy and thrilled I am right now. And the only reason it happened was because of all the help I got in getting here, especially from one main source."

Her eyes shining, she looked quickly back at Kevin with all the love in her eyes she could muster without being obvious. He returned her smile, nodding gently to her as she went on.

"So, I think that I can say this victory today really isn't mine alone. There were a lot of people who were so very important in helping me be able to make this, this fantastic dream come true for me. First, there are my parents. Uh, they're right over there."

Tara smiled as she pointed at them and the crowd turned and acknowledged them with applause as Mark and Jill again enthusiastically waved back, her mother blowing a kiss to her.

Looking to the side where her team mates were standing, again regarding Kevin among them, she added, "Also, I want to thank Mr. Amberson and the entire Middleton chess club. You guys are great!"

She pointed at them as the crowd applauded again and cheered. There were a few whistles in the crowd and someone called out, "Hey! Let's hear it for the nerds!"

Laughter filtered through the crowd again and Tara looked back out in the direction of the caller in amusement and replied, "Yeah, let's hear it for all of us, because I guess that makes me one, too, huh?"

The audience laughed once more and clapped again in support of her. When the noise died once more, she was gazing down at the floor, deep in thought. After a few seconds, she looked up solemnly at the crowd. Her face was serene, almost shining, and it made the crowd go completely quiet.

"But you know.", she said softly, "Most of all, I would like to thank the person who taught me how to play the game. That was my grandfather, James Jackson Mallory. If it wasn't for him, none of this would have been possible. I'm only sorry he couldn't be here today to see this day, this wonderful day. You see, he passed away a few years ago. But I really hope he's able to see me now, and I think he can."

She gazed at the crowd a moment, then up to the ceiling, "So, I just want to say to him, 'Thank You, Grandpa. I love you'."

She smiled widely back at the crowd as they broke into a steady din of applause again, which continued even after she had replaced the microphone into its stand. Then she stood back away from the front with her trophy as her team mates began crowding around her. Slowly, other people began to crowd around her too, continuing to praise her victory and shaking her hand, giving her words of encouragement as she thanked all of them yet again. Finally, the crush of bodies began to break up enough to allow the news people in to approach her. All Tara could do was stand there and keep repeating 'thank you' to everyone who approached.

The first reporter to reach her, a woman, stuck her microphone right in Tara's face.

"Liz Scarbaugher here, Miss Monroe. How do you feel about your victory, today?"

Taken aback a little, she stammered, "Uh. Oh, I'm really happy and pleased."

Another reporter cut in, a black woman, "I'm Tricia Lebowski, Middleton News. Did you think you, as a girl, would be able to compete with the guys in this event?"

"Ah!", Tara exclaimed in mild surprise, "Uh, well. That distinction never entered my mind, really."

"Then, Miss Monroe.", interjected a man, "Did you feel like you proved something here today, that women could compete with men?"

Tara backed up a little more as the reporters continued to crowd her. More than a few microphones were now pointed in her direction.

"I've always felt women could compete with men in pretty much anything," she replied, "but that's not why I play chess."

"Why do you play?"

"Because I enjoy it!"

"How exactly did you learn to play chess, Miss Monroe?"

Tara smiled as she answered, "Well, like I said, my grandfather taught me the game. Aside from my parents, he was the greatest influence in my life."

"Did anybody else coach you for this championship?"

"Errr."

Tara looked over to where Kevin was standing off to the side, his face still beaming like a lighthouse, showing how proud he was of her as he watched from a distance to allow her to bask in the attention. She held out her hand to him, a longing in her eyes. His eyebrows furrowed, then went up in mild surprise when he understood she wanted him to come up. He soon reached her, and she grabbed his hand and held it.

"You all know Kevin Guberman.", she said, "He was last year's champion, and he's the captain of Middleton's chess team. Next to my grandfather, I'd have to say he taught me the most."

Kevin looked at her in surprise, but then his gaze was drawn away when the reporters started to pepper him with questions.

"So, Kevin. Was she a good student of the game?"

"How much did you have to work with her to get her to championship level?"

"Do you have a good working relationship?"

Kevin held up his free hand, "Hey, guys! Hold up. Listen. Tara is a great chess player. I didn't hardly have to teach her anything. She's a natural talent who only needed someone to play with her and help hone her game. She was the best player here this weekend, and in fact she's as good as I am, if not better."

Tara frowned slightly in protest, "Now, that's so not true, Kevin."

He looked at her intently and solemnly replied, "Oh, yes it is, Tara. It is."

She blinked her eyes as she gazed at him, realizing he was serious. Noticing the way they looked at each other, the reporters switched their line of questioning.

"So you two have been seeing a lot of each other, haven't you?"

"Are you two dating?"

"What is the nature of your relationship?"

Tara and Kevin stared goggle-eyed in surprise at the crowding reporters, open-mouthed and unable to respond. They were only saved by a blurred form that suddenly somersaulted in between both groups.

"Ooookaaaay! People!", yelled Kim Possible as she stood up, a barrier between the two teens and their pursuers, "I think that's enough for today!"

That was all the news people needed. Now they had a bigger news figure of whom to take advantage.

"Miss Possible! What is your relationship to the Miss Monroe?"

"You're both cheerleaders. Are you friends off the field as well?"

"Do you play chess, too, Miss Possible?"

Making herself available to the reporters, Kim fielded the questions as she motioned Tara and Kevin to go on and leave the ballroom. She knew they would be far more interested in interviewing the world famous teen hero than the local chess champion, especially since she was making such a spectacular appearance after her initial refusal.

* * *

Tara and Kevin slipped away without much more commotion through a side door into an exit corridor, their trophies in hand. Sighing with relief, they put them on the ground and leaned up against a wall, exasperated with everything that had happened to them today. Tara giggled and looked at Kevin, putting out her arms for him. He eagerly embraced and kissed her.

When they finally gasped for breath, she laughed, "Kevin Guberman! You nut! Did you mean that?"

He smiled contentedly and replied, "Yeah, I mean it, Tara. I think you are better."

"Bull!", She said with a cheerful snort, then slowly leaned in and kissed him again.

Unexpectedly, a cough sounded from the end of the corridor by the exit door that went to the outside of the convention hall. Kevin and Tara looked up. There was a girl who stood there, arms crossed, a timid look on her face. Her light brown hair was a little disheveled, and she was slightly hunched over, looking at them intently. The look on her face was blank, unreadable, neither happy, nor sad. But it was a surprise that she was there at all.

It was Bonnie.

'Of all the times to show up.', thought Tara as she stared, dumbfounded.

Ever since Jason, Bonnie had simply disappeared, abandoning the cheer squad. There was no explanation, no reason behind it that made sense. Tara couldn't understand how she could desert perhaps the most important feature of her life. For weeks now, she had been gone, no longer 'there'. Tara was still so angry with Bonnie that she never bothered talking to her, nor even tried to see her. They didn't have any classes together, but they did pass in the hall occasionally, so she knew Bonnie could have returned to the squad at any time. It seemed Bonnie wanted to avoid Tara as much as Tara had been avoiding her. Nothing was ever said between them. Later on, when Kim had finally resumed practices for the upcoming Spring events, Bonnie was still absent. After the first two practices, the squad became concerned. Kim tried to explain it away telling everyone that Bonnie had taken a 'leave of absence', supposedly for visits to college campuses. Nobody really bought that excuse, and Tara couldn't have cared less. In truth, she feared the day Bonnie would return, dreading having to put up with her sniping yet again. Still, she was sure there was no way Bonnie would stay away forever. Cheer was still the major defining role of her life at this point. But as the cheer squad continued to get their routines ready for Memorial Day and the Mad Dog Picnic, day after day, week after week. Bonnie still hadn't come back, and the quality of the work was starting to show it. Some of the routines really needed direction which only her dance expertise could give them. When some of the girls asked about Bonnie again, Kim replied she knew nothing more than what she had already told them, that Bonnie was too busy looking at colleges. She did say she had even tried contacting Bonnie directly, but that she wasn't answering her cell phone. That was not unexpected though. Bonnie rarely answered her phone if she didn't want to talk to whoever was calling. Tara herself gave it no further thought. As far as she was concerned, the longer Bonnie stayed away, the better.

'And now, all of a sudden, she picks this time to show up?', she fumed. Tara eyed her voraciously, thinking again of every acid remark, every put down, every condescending quip Bonnie had ever said to her, and all she wanted to do right now was shove it right back down her throat.

"Well, Bonnie,", she said a little vindictively, "It's been a while. Decide to show your face in public after all?"

Bonnie's eyes flashed immediate anger, but just as quickly damped it down. Looking as calm as she could, she answered, "Couldn't be helped, 'T'. I'm sure you heard I was busy visiting campuses. I just got back from looking Yale over. Can't say I care for it."

"_As if_!", riposted Tara nastily, "You'll make Ivy league when pigs fly!"

"Or maybe when cheerleaders win chess tournaments?", Bonnie replied in a soft retort.

"So not the drama, Bonnie!" Tara countered hotly, "So what's your prob? Why are you here?"

"No prob.", she mumbled, "I just wanted to say congratulations."

"For what?"

Bonnie huffed in exasperation, "For winning the tournament of course, Tara!"

"Oh?", she replied, eyebrows lifted high in feigned puzzlement, "That's strange. I thought it might be for landing this bodaciously delicious boyfriend of mine."

She put her arms around Kevin's neck seductively as she continued to stare Bonnie down.

"I guess it would be a shame there aren't more like him.", she said, "But then, I guess you don't have to worry. He's not your type, is he? You're still a 'food chain' sort of girl, aren't you? Say, if you're tired of Brick, I think there's a big hunk of a basketball player who's available that you might like, especially if you don't mind criminal records."

The barbs hit home as Bonnie's face drained to a sickly pale shade. She looked away and muttered something. Tara couldn't make it out.

"What was that, 'B'?"

Bonnie sighed and stuttered, "I... ...said that I..."

"Oh, come on! Spit it out!"

"_I said I didn't know_!", Bonnie suddenly yelled at her.

Tara stared at her, the disgust clear on her face, making it obvious she thought Bonnie should have known better.

"I didn't know, Tara.", Bonnie said again, her shaking voice almost whispering. "And I'm sorry."

That enraged Tara. Her face changed. A fury hardened her features as she glared wide eyed at Bonnie.

"Sorry?", she said, slowly disengaging herself from Kevin's arms and starting towards her, "Sorry? You don't know how sorry you are, you two faced little b..."

"Tara!", exclaimed Kevin, interrupting and grabbing her arm.

The anger still raging in her eyes, she turned and stared at him. He slowly shook his head and mouthed 'No.'

Realizing she had almost lost it, Tara controlled herself better and took a deep breath. She looked back at Bonnie, hard, still staring her down, still not giving an inch. Bonnie withered from that unforgiving glare, her face breaking into an anguished look and her eyes watering.

She broke into tears and repeated in an agonized voice, "I'm sorry.", then turned quickly and walked out the exit door.

Tara didn't move, staring at her retreating figure. Neither she nor Kevin did anything for several moments.

Kevin said, "I think she meant it, Tara."

"Yeah, okay, maybe", she said stiffly after a few seconds, deep in thought, her eyes still not moving from the exit door.

The anger diffusing away, her demeanor changed and she looked back at Kevin, adding contritely, "I know! I over-reacted a little. But I'm just too angry at her. Maybe... ...maybe we'll talk it out later."

She sighed heavily as he gathered her back in his arms again.

"Considering it's Bonnie.", he said, "That took a heck of lot to make her come down and say that much."

"True.", she replied, thoughtfully, "And now that I think about it, I believe that is the first time I have ever heard her apologize sincerely for anything. We'll see how it goes, I think. Maybe I'll try and look her up later."

"Good.", he said smiling, then leaned in to kiss her again just as the exit doors suddenly burst open.

"There you are!", shouted someone.

The cheer squad came in, squealing and jumping up and down as they hugged Tara and then Kevin. The last one to come through was Kim, who came through the doors with Ron and grabbed Tara in a huge embrace, laughing and giggling with her.

"You are _sooooo_ the girl now, Tara! Congrats! To both you and Kevin!"

"Thanks, Kim! And thanks for the help back there."

"No big! I figured you needed some help from someone with a little more experience with the press."

"And nobody does it like Kim.", added Ron, smiling.

"Oh, yeah!", said Tara, laughing again.

"And I can't tell you how much I appreciate having the spotlight on someone else for a change!", groused Kim jokingly.

"Oh brother, I see what you mean.", Kevin quipped, 'That can get annoying real quick."

"Tell me about it!", Ron said, "So, what are you two smart dudes going to do now, now that we've all are just about to graduate? Going to college together?"

Kevin's smile dimmed a little, "Well, You know I'm going to Dartmouth for college, then on to medical school. Tara's applied for Middleton college, but she still hasn't made up her mind. I had hoped she would be able to apply to Dartmouth, too, but the money thing, you know."

Ron frowned, "But dude, you'll be so far apart."

"Yeah, I know, but we can make it work."

He smiled and looked back at her, quickly losing his grin when he caught her looking down at the ground with a serious grimace.

Tara looked up at him and said, "No, Kevin. It's not going to work."

He stared at her, stunned. Everyone else there became silent, just as shocked.

"But Tara, I thought... ...I thought we would..."

She held up her hand, interrupting him, "Kevin."

She gazed around at her squad mates, all struck mute.

Looking back at her boyfriend, she said, "I want to say this, now. I meant to tell you when we were alone later tonight, but this is better, because I want the squad to know too. I don't want a long distance relationship. That doesn't work for me, especially with my plans. I made up my mind what I want to do with my life not too long ago, and that's going to take a big commitment from me. Middleton College is a good school, but for what I want to do, I needed something more in line with my choice of career. You helped me apply to a lot of colleges, and you know I was accepted to several of them. But I haven't told you I chose one."

Kevin was white as chalk, "But, Tara! You didn't say anything about that! You already chose which college?. Which one? I thought you wouldn't be able to afford it! And where? What about us? What do you mean?-"

"I'm sorry, Kevin.", she interrupted, "But I didn't know for sure I would be able to do this until very recently, and I didn't want to get your hopes up. You know I had always thought about going to nursing school, but something was missing. Don't get me wrong. I think nursing is fine as a profession, but I needed something more. Only I didn't think I was smart enough to do it."

She smiled as she placed her palm on his face, caressing him, their eyes locking.

In a softer tone, she said, "Kevin, I've had a couple of talks with your mother recently. You see, there was this boy who kept telling me how smart I was, that I could do anything..."

She looked at Kim momentarily then returned her gaze back at Kevin again. Kim smiled. She had absolutely no problem with Tara stealing her line.

"If it wasn't for him,", Tara continued, "I would have never imagined going into a career I thought was beyond me. If it wasn't for him, I never would have thought I could do anything like it. I didn't let on to your mother quite what I was thinking at the time because I wasn't sure then, but I am now. She showed me enough to enable me to make my decision and what she said finally convinced me you were right, that I should go for broke, to go for what I really wanted."

Tara's eyes were glistening now.

"It was you, Kevin, you. You were the one who showed me I could be a physician."

He gasped at her, "What?"

"Yes, Kevin. I want to be a doctor, like you. And I chose the only school I could go to for college, because I can't be apart from that boy who believes in me so much. I need him around to keep me going, because I can't do it without him, so...

"Kevin, we're both going to Dartmouth."

The cheer squad erupted into wild cheering and yelling, crowding around and patting them on the back as she hugged Kevin again, nuzzling his neck. Kim had her hand on Tara's shoulder, about to cry herself as Ron reached around and hugged her from behind, his chin on her shoulder, smiling.

Kevin's eyes closed in pure bliss at the news as she whispered in his ear, "I'll never get tired of saying I love you, you know."

He couldn't stop the tears from coming as he whispered back, "And I'll never get tired of hearing it. I_ so_ love you, too."

**The Next Chapter should be up in just a few days...**


	15. Chapter 14

**Author's Note: There are loose ends to tie up, and strained friendships which must either be repaired or extinguished. The first section gives a lot of detail into Bonnie's life. Then it gets to the meat of the chapter. Zen Buddhism sometimes teaches that the most unworthy should sometimes get the greatest gifts. And even the most powerful should always show their mercy.**

**Chapter Fourteen**

**The Queen's Mercy**

Bonnie busied herself with packing her bags for yet another trip to yet another college. It was senseless, really. She had already made up her mind where she wanted to go, but what choice did she have? She couldn't go back to school now, especially after the way Tara had reacted to her. No, this was the right choice, the only way to avoid any further contact. She just had to keep going to colleges. The only good thing was, well, it didn't hurt to check out other schools. You never know if something else might turn up that was better. It was just she was _so_ tired of this whole farce, wasting time going to a bunch of lame so-called institutions of higher learning. Lately she started seriously considering just chucking it all, staying home, and going to Middleton College.

Abruptly she stopped packing, startled at what she was thinking, reaching out for such a move of desperation, and she actually shuddered that the thought had gone through her mind _again!_ On reflection, she couldn't think of anywhere worse to go.

She thrust her attention back on course. One thing, more than anything else, kept her going. The trips were not entirely a lost cause because of her one true goal. True, it had been absolutely essential to find the right college because that was the stepping stone to that ultimate goal, her true dream, the one thing she wanted more than anything else in her life, and that was the _Ballet Classique de France _in Paris. The Holy Grail of Dance, the birthplace of Ballet itself, where it all started in the country of its origin. As a ballerina, she knew how good she was, even as it annoyed her to no end that even as talented and well trained she was, she was not yet good enough to directly vie for a spot in that daunting troupe. Her teacher was still enthusiastic about her chances even though the old woman had made it perfectly clear that Bonnie needed more work, more training, all at a level she could no longer provide her. She had given Bonnie a strong foundation in the basics, but the advanced training she now required would have to come from somewhere else. Despite how much it aggravated her to admit it, Bonnie had the insight to know she was right.

But this dream could be made into reality. There was a way. _If_ she landed a place in the ballet troupe of the right college, where she finally would be able to get the extra training and exposure to succesfully rise to that fabled stratosphere of the dance world, and this meant she would get the chance to prove to them all beforehand what she knew she always could be, the best up and coming ballerina in the world. The performance she knew she could give them would absolutely ensure an audition would be offered, followed by acceptance into that august and elite society in Paris. If only...

She stared at the underwear in her hands. Brought back to reality, she became depressed again. It was this miserable town! The cretinous fools with whom she had to deal! She certainly knew she sure wasn't going to achieve her dreams here in Middleton. _Oh, Gawd! D_id she really think of going to Middleton College just then? _Grrrrr-oss!_

Aggravated, she stuffed her underwear into the bag and continued her packing, all the while wanting more than ever to drop everything and head directly for Paris, to simply and stunningly show them what she could do. Of course, she restrained herself. She was not that stupidly impulsive. 'Blast it!', she griped to herself mentally as she contnued to stuff her bags, 'Twelve years just isn't enough! Why did it have to be so difficult! It's just not right!'

It wasn't her fault. That turned her thoughts back to her parents who were, after all, the biggest part of the problem because they were the ones throwing major roadblacks up every step of the way. It all started with them! 'Why is it they have no class about this whole thing!, she thought morosely.

It was _so_ flabbergasting to her that the two people responsible for bringing her into this world, and from whose genes she received hers, had no appreciation whatsoever for the magnificence of the truist form of dance. Period! As such, of course, they were not in any way, shape, or form, in favor of this as a career choice. She was strangely fortunate they had allowed her to continue through those twelve years of ballet lessons, but irritatingly it was only to humor little 'Bon-Bon' more than anything else. Yet, the one thing that made it altogether _so_ ironic was that they got the one critical thing right that she absolutely needed to succeed. They made sure she had an excellent teacher, one who happened to be an absolute stickler for the basics, who drilled her students mercilessly, and who was overjoyed to find in Bonnie the superb perfectionist in technique she had always sought out, a miracle wished for almost in vain out here in the far frontiers so lacking in culture. A troupe dancer for the Moscow Ballet, the now elderly woman was never quite talented enough to make star status, but was a solid steady support dancer for many years in her younger days. She knew her craft thoroughly and expertly, and was able to pass it on to the right students with the talent. For her, Bonnie was a Godsend, the best disciple she ever had, and in the young girl, even when she began at age six, she recognized the potential, the possible greatness. But the old teacher also realized that even she had her limits as an instructor in regards to what the young girl needed to train her to her fullest ability as a primadona ballerina. And so, when the time came, about two years prior to this, at the beginning of Bonnie's junior year, they starting planning on finding her the right teacher to take her to the next level.

That's where things started to go wrong. When Bonnie brought up her plans up with her parents, they immediately balked. All they were concerned about was her higher education, not some flighty dream of 'dancing' that was in no way respectable enough, or promising enough for a daughter of theirs. They informed her that only a profession that would be financially secure her furure was the only acceptable option, not some idealistic unreasonable romping across stages that would leave her broke, and they refused to brook any resistance to their plans, especially since they were paying for it. That meant Bonnie had to go to college and get a good degree that would let her earn a good living if she wanted any financial support from them. Ballet, or any art, for that matter was out, and had no part in their plans. Bonnie was heartbroken, despairing, but as she thought about it, she began to make her own plans, to find an alternative that would allow her to do as her parents demanded, yet allow her to continue dancing. All she had to do was simply do both. As long as she fulfilled the requirement of school, why should they care what she did in her spare time?

So, the first thing she had to do was find the right institution. That's where the struggle began, as the schools Bonnie had chosen to attend, mainly for their dance programs, were not the ones her parents thought appropriate for their vision of her higher education. To her dismay, they wanted her to go to State University, whose dance program was a travesty as far as Bonnie and her instructor were concerned. Faced with this dilemma, Bonnie and her teacher did more extensive research, to find schools with both excellent business programs as well as strong dance departments. But her parents knew what she was trying to do, and turned down every single one.

They fought for months over it, but as it turned out over time, it ended up not so hard for her to pull it off as her older sisters eventually bailed at the first opportunity where higher education was concerned. Connie was already engaged to some up and coming lawyer making a hefty salary at his law firm and on the fast track for partnership. Lonnie had actually scored better than that, and never stopped talking about it. That left Bonnie as the only chance for her parents to get a college graduate out of the entire brood. By halfway through her senior year, Bonnie finally had some well needed negotiating leverage when Lonnie finally became engaged, a year after Connie. It was then her parents relented and allowed her to choose whatever school she wanted, as long as it had a strong business school. They hoped she would still outgrow the dance nonsense in time. In the end, Bonnie went with Princeton, an Ivy League school which was not cheap. Her parents rolled their eyes at this, reluctantly agreeing. Their main reservation was the cost, of course, which prompted them to urge Bonnie to look for another school that was less expensive. But with the loss of her older sisters from their plans, her parents no longer pushed their agenda so hard. They still needled her about finding someplace cheaper to go, thus the reason behind all the trips to colleges Bonnie was making now. So even though Bonnie already had already had been accepted to Princeton, her parents' financial concerns gave her the excuse to continue looking at other colleges with their consent. It became convenient under the present circumstances at school also.

'Ugh.', she thought again in disgust as she packed the suitcases fuller, 'I would be the one having to live up to their aspirations. It's always the youngest who has to do it, isn't it? Why do I always get stuck with making them happy?'

At least the haggling with her parents was over. She would go to college, concentrate on her ballet, then when it was time, jump right into it full tilt as soon as she could audition for _Ballet Classique_. Hopefully only two years if her teacher had estimated her progress correctly, and if she avoided any injuries. It was also possible, if her dance technique impressed the director well enough that the right college could also guarantee her enough exposure to be considered not just for the main company for the school, but also to possibly go early on to such premiere troupes as the New York City Ballet, or the Joffrey, and then she could attempt Paris. But then those troupes would be rather prestigious in their own right also, just in case Paris didn't work out.

Still, her one wish, really, was to be in Paris, to bask in the ballet, and fashion capitol of the world, and once her ballerina career was on the rise and she was firmly esconced among the great dancers of history, she could go for the next rung on the ladder, that second career in fashion where she would establish some connections with the great fashion houses, and of course Paris was the great center of fashion as well! _Parfait! _She thought the Paris branch of _Vogue_ magazine would be a lovely place to start.

She thought back to her impending trip and smirked. 'Yeah, it doesn't hurt to check out the other schools, if for no other reason than to check out the male student population, particularly the jocks.'

She had no intention of straying from Brick, but it didn't hurt to look. Of course, if the right boy from the right family came along.

She looked through her vanity case to see if their was space in there for some more of her underwear from the overpacked suitcase. As she did, she came across the perfume bottle that Tara had given her the year before. It was a beautiful scent.

She became distracted again. Idly, she wondered how Tara was doing. It had been weeks now since the attack, and only a couple of days since the chess tournament. It still hurt to think of the anger in Tara's voice when she spoke to her then, trying to to make up?. Was that it? She wasn't sure what she was trying to do, and she didn't know what to expect, certainly not the reaction she got. There was no question in her mind that Tara was angry as hell and very much wanted to belt her a good one. She wasn't sure if she really would have done it, though. Of course, the nerd made sure she didn't, but she also couldn't escape the ugly feeling that even if Tara did belt her, she wouldn't have tried to avoid it.

'"It's not my fault!", she muttered to herself, trying to convince herself she really didn't deserve it, and mad that her mood had somehow been brought down again by turning her thoughts from ballet to... ...that.

Abruptly, she changed her mind, jamming the perfume back into the case and closing it, deciding to just keep squeezing the suitcase tighter until it closed. But even though she uttered the words of denial, her feelings were completely opposite. She knew... ...she knew she was to blame, no matter how much she tried to rationalize it. She was glad Kim agreed to continue to relay her convenient excuse to the rest of the squad about her absence, though Kim made it clear she didn't believe her. Bonnie didn't care, as long as appearances were kept. But she was bothered by the fact that Hope was the only one who did ask her directly why she wasn't coming to the practices, and only after a full month since she had last showed up. Of course, she could probably blame Kim Possible for that disinterest, too. _Damn!_ That girl would _never _gave her an even break!

She grunted hard as she finally was able to close the bag up, leaning down with her entire body to get the zipper pulled shut. 'They just don't make these bags large enough!', she thought. She opened up the smaller suitcase to start packing it when she heard someone coming up the stairs, followed by a noise at her bedroom door. She turned in irritation to see who was intruding this time, and groaned to herself when she saw the new arrival, grinning malevolently as she lounged in the doorway. Bonnie kept calm. She realized she would have eventually shown up, if for no other reason than to rub her nose in everything that had happened to her...

"Going on another college trip, are we?", Lonnie said sweetly.

"Jealous much?", retorted Bonnie, staring her sister down.

"_So_ not!", she chuckled, "Why do I need to go to college? After all, I'm dating Jamison Farnsworth, whose uncle is richer than half of Middleton put together. And when I marry him, college is the last thing I'll ever need."

"So you keep telling us.", Bonnie griped in a low voice as she turned back to packing her smaller suitcase, "This is only the hundredth time you've mentioned it."

"Well, you do seem to have a problem with listening.", Lonnie said more virulently, "Even as many times as I told you how to do it, you still couldn't take the captaincy of the cheer squad away from Possible!"

Bonnie froze, her back still towards her older sister. She said nothing for a moment then continued on with her packing as if nothing her sister said mattered.

She replied in a soft voice, "Well, it's of no importance. In fact, I've quit the cheer squad altogether."

Lonnie's eyes went wide.

"You what?", she cried, "Are you crazy or something? It's family tradition! Every Rockwaller is at the top of the food chain! And that means you have to be the cheer squad captain and you date the hottest jock! You can't be a real Rockwaller without that!"

"Well, I guess there's a first time for everything, isn't there?", Bonnie spat back at her as she shoved clothes roughly into the suitcase, her temper finally flaring.

"So that's it?", Lonnie shouted angrily, 'Just because Blondie got roughed up a little, you're going to quit?"

Bonnie froze again, this time stunned her sister's mouth actually uttered those words. But before she could answer, Lonnie snorted in disgust and turned away from the door.

"You are _such_ a loser!", she spat out as she walked away.

Bonnie never looked back at her, standing there staring at her half packed bag, breathing hard, her fists clenched so tight she was drawing blood from the palms with her manicured nails. She finally noticed the pain, loosened her hands, and looked at the small puncture marks. She heard the front door slam, and was able to take a deep breath and sigh.

"Better _that _than you, sister.", she muttered in an ugly voice to herself as she turned and walked into the bathroom to clean up. At least now she could finish packing in peace. Nobody else was in the house.

She washed her hands clean and put some antiseptic on the small puncture marks. They had quickly clotted and didn't need any bandages. She dried her hands and went back into the bedroom and continued to pack. She picked up a couple of blouses and was putting them in when she heard the door creak again. Frowning, her shoulders dropped in frustration as she realized her sister had come back again to torment her further.

"Look, Lonnie!", she said as she finally turned to face her, "I am sick and tired of hearing this same garbage! So..."

Bonnie froze, gasping in surprise.

Kim Possible was leaning comfortably up against the door jamb, dressed in her mission gear.

"Whuh! What? How?", Bonnie stuttered, wide eyed.

Kim focused a hard gaze on her, then shifted her eyes momentarily over towards the open bay windows next to the doorway before looking back at her.

Bonnie glanced briefly at them too, feeling the wind come gently through. She relaxed as she understood, her usual sour look overtaking her face again.

"Sneaking around through windows as usual, 'K'?", she said haughtily.

"Well, if you had the skills to do it like I do it, 'B', you might be cheer squad captain.", Kim riposted.

Bonnie sneered and turned back to her suitcase.

"What do you want? I'm busy!"

"Your sisters have an interesting view on family tradition, not to mention yours on cheerleading."

"So you heard that.", she replied nonchalantly, "You've always been such a Nosy Parker, Possible."

"You should know, Bonnie!"

Bonnie paused a moment as she was putting her make up kit into the smaller suitcase, but quickly resumed packing.

"Well, it's no big. Cheerleading is _so_ blase now. It's just not for me anymore.", Bonnie answered curtly, "I've got higher standards now."

"Oh, so that's why you quit the cheer squad. _Not_!"

Bonnie paused again, her shampoo bottle in her hand. She turned and faced Kim, crossing her arms.

"Obviously this isn't a social call, Kim. What is it you want?"

"Answer the question, Bonnie. Why did you quit?"

"You heard me!", Bonnie said vituperatively.

"_As if_!", retorted Kim again, "For four years now you've been hounding me, harassing me, always looking for the chance to push me out and be captain! Ever since we were freshmen when I made the squad, and was made captain right after that, you've resented my presence every step of the way! Even after that time we were sophomores when I let them vote you in as Captain, you didn't go the distance! And you _still_ came after me!"

"That's not my fault!", Bonnie spat out, "You never told me how much work there was! I wasn't ready. I had too much to do elsewhere!"

"Oh, sure!", Kim replied derisively, "So that's why you handed the captaincy back to me after only three weeks! _So not_!"

"_So yeah_! I had to get organized and ready, and I was ready after that! _But you wouldn't let me have it back_!"

"The girls wouldn't vote you back in after you deserted them like that!", shouted Kim angrily, "I had nothing to do with it! But that only underscores my point! Nothing mattered more to you than taking the captaincy back! _Nothing_!"

Bonnie hesitated. She couldn't counter that argument. Kim stared her down, daring her to keep a straight face and keep lying. Somehow Bonnie managed to do it, but Kim did notice her gulp slightly before she answered.

"I just realized it's just _so_ juvenile, Kim.", Bonnie said steadily, though clearly in a strained tone, "Unlike you and your 'boyfriend', I've moved beyond that."

"Uh-huh.", said Kim, obviously not believing her, "And 'Blondie' getting roughed up a little doesn't have anything to do with it either, huh?"

A wave of regret ran through Bonnie, and also fear. She tried to hold her composure, but Kim saw her eyes change, saw the terror suddenly appear, and she knew she had been right. Bonnie's entire attitude changed and she looked at Kim with hesitation on her face.

"Look, Kim.", she said timidly, "What Lonnie said was wrong. I don't feel that way. In fact I can't tell you how bad I feel about what happened to Tara. I really do."

Kim stood there for a good while, staring at her before she answered.

"You know." she finally replied, "That's the first truthful thing you've said to me so far, and in more ways than one. So why haven't you talked to her? You two are supposed to be BFF's. Don't you think you owe it to her to give her some support? To give some comfort to a friend who's been hurt that badly?"

"I did talk to her, at the chess tournament, for a moment..."

"How many weeks after the attack?", Kim said, interrupting, "and for how long?"

"Well, Tara wasn't exactly in a talking mood just then, you know, and she was busy with the tournament."

"Oh, sure." Kim replied snidely, "Like you _really_ tried that hard to talk to her!"

Bonnie blinked, unable to think of anything to say to that.

"Unless of course.", Kim continued, "You couldn't talk to her, because you felt..."

"Er, well, you know I have had to make all these trips."

"...because you felt so guilty you couldn't face her."

Bonnie's stomach jumped into her throat, even as her face remained etched in stone, unmoving. Only her eyes flickered, still stricken.

"What for, Kim?", she said as casually as she could, "I have nothing to feel guilty about. If anything..."

Bonnie gasped as Kim suddenly moved, jumping at her so quickly that she blinked in surprise. Kim stopped two feet in front of her, shoving a photograph into her face. It was grainy and dark, but very easy to see what in the picture.

"Recognize it, 'B'?", Kim said dangerously.

"Uh.", stammered Bonnie, "Okay, so it's my car. So what? Is that how you always stayed ahead, Possible? By spying on me and the others?"

"_You wish_!", Kim spat at her, "Don't you understand now, Bonnie? This is your car! At the park where Tara was attacked!..."

"So what? I do my running there sometimes."

"...on the same night and at the same time she was attacked! You were there, Bonnie! You saw it all!"

Bonnie's mouth dropped open and her face went pale, all pretense of hiding her fear now swept away. Slowly, she sat down on the bed.

"Kim, I didn't know.", she said in a small frightened voice.

"Is that why you videotaped it?", Kim taunted her, "Did you hate her so much you had to get revenge by having her hurt like that?"

Bonnie came alive, shocking Kim.

"_No_!", she yelled, standing up and getting right up into Kim's face, forcing her to take a step back.

"I would _never_ do that!", she retorted angrily, "She's still my friend, Possible! I still care for her! You don't know how much I want that friendship back again! _There's no way_! You understand me? No! Freaking! Way! No way, I would _ever_ want that to happen to her, or any girl! You hear me? I didn't know that was going to happen! _I didn't know_!"

Bonnie stood her ground shaking uncontrollably, crying, but she didn't back down one inch. Kim was impressed. She had never seen her do something like that before.

She stepped back calmly, steadily regarding Bonnie.

"I believe you.", she said very softly.

Bonnie blinked twice in disbelief, "You... ...do?"

'Yes, I do.", Kim said firmly, "I was pretty sure when I figured out it was you who turned in the videotape anonymously to the police. I just had to hear it from you."

"But, how did you?..."

Irritated, Kim put her hands on her hips and frowned at her.

"Bonnie.", she said, "What part of 'I can do anything' do you _still_ not understand?"

"Uh, yeah. I guess so.", she answered, "So, is that why you're here? To make me admit it?"

"Partially.", Kim replied, her gaze still piercing Bonnie painfully, "There's still one thing more. How did Jason know where to find them?"

Bonnie gulped hard. She could blame Jason all she wanted for what happened to Tara, but she would be forever unable to escape the fact that it never would have happened if she hadn't set it up.

She shrank back down onto the bed. For a second she thought, 'I can't tell her! I can't!-"

"Me.", she murmured breathlessly, almost inaudibly, and not believing she was really admitting it, "It was me. I let him know."

She closed her eyes as tears started pouring silently down her face.

"Kim, you _have_ to believe me. I am _so_ sorry. I didn't mean for anything like that to happen."

"I do, Bonnie.", Kim replied calmly, "I am absolutely convinced that in your twisted little way, and despite your ulterior motives, you actually were trying to look out for your friend. Though I can't for the life of me figure how you would think starting a fight between Kevin and Jason would help."

"I thought... ...I thought that it would prove Kevin really started the first fight, or so I figured at the time."

"Uh-huh.", Kim replied, nodding to herself, "Looks like I got that right, too."

She came and sat down next to Bonnie on the bed, putting a hand on her shoulder. Her face was still stern, but now there was no hint of anger.

"It's because of that, Bonnie,", she said, "and also that I hoped you would own up to it, that I haven't told anybody, including Tara. I was thinking of telling her if you hadn't come clean, but I felt I owed you a chance to explain first. That's why I came. But the way I see it, even though you didn't mean it, it's still your fault. You're going to have to tell her what you did."

Bonnie eyes shot wide open.

"No! Kim!", she pleaded, "She'll hate me forever! I can't!"

Kim nodded, deep in thought, "That's a chance you're going to have take, although frankly I think you're selling Tara short. But you are going to tell her. Because if you don't, it's going to come out anyway."

Bonnie choked off a wail, her eyes terror stricken.

"No, Bonnie.", Kim assured her, "I've thought it over. It won't come from me. But it will come out, either through the police, a reporter, or somebody. And if she finds out some other way, I think you will lose her forever. I won't volunteer the info, but if she gets the photos and asks me about them when they come out, I'm not going to lie. I'm giving you the chance to come clean before something like that happens. You're the one that needs to make this right."

"But I could be arrested!", Bonnie cried, "She might turn me in instead!"

Two more tears came down her cheeks as her face went ashen.

"She might.", Kim answered thoughtfully, "But I really doubt it. If it comes down to that, I'll talk to her. I think I can convince her not to do it."

"You would do that?"

Kim nodded and sighed, biting her lower lip, "Look, Bonnie. When we got stuck together by Dementor's Bondo Ball last year, that was the first time I saw you actually were human, sort of anyway. I saw a real person inside. Since then I always thought it possible for that person to come out, even though all this time you _really_ have been such a pain in the butt! But I also realize I haven't been the easiest person for you to get along with either, and we've harshed on each other a lot."

Kim stopped and took a deep breath, letting it out.

"Look, we may never be friends, but I don't see why we can't try and find a way to put all this behind us and get along, especially for Tara's sake. Okay? And that goes for the rest of the squad."

Distraught, Bonnie looked at her in confusion. She absent-mindedly picked up her ballet slippers, clutching at them softly.

"You mean they'll have to know, too?"

"No. I told them just what you told me, that you left to make college trips, not that they bought that story, you know. I'll leave it up to you and Tara how much you want them to know. But you have to tell Tara everything. She deserves that much from you. You're supposed to be her friend. Act like one."

Bonnie's face fell even further as she thought about making that admission, the dread in her growing by the minute.

"Kim, they'll despise me if they ever find out.", she whispered frantically, "They'll never take me back onto the squad."

Kim got up and walked back over to the open window. She set one foot outside on the sill and pulled out her hair dryer grappler, preparing to fire it. She looked back at Bonnie.

"I think they will take you back, Bonnie, especially with my recommendation.", she replied, "Your quitting the squad without a good explanation has got them bothered enough as it is. It left them in such a lurch with the routines, especially the underclassmen. They need to understand them better, and you're the only person who can do that. Like I said, you don't have to tell them everything about what happened. If you work things out with Tara, and I think you can, how much you do tell them is for you and her to decide. When I talked to them the other day about your leaving the squad, I told them we should wait a little longer and see what was going on, that maybe you had some 'issues' to deal with. I also told them that you were strong enough to overcome your problems and come back to a squad to which you have made important contributions, After all, you still made a good co-captain, even if you were a little 'slave driverish', and you did whip our routines up yet another notch. It made the difference in winning regionals."

Dumbstruck and staring, Bonnie whispered, "I... ...I... ...you really mean it?"

"I wouldn't say it if I didn't."

"I don't know if I can, Kim."

Kim looked out the window and fired her grappler line, catching the hook high into a nearby tree. She grabbed the grappler with both hands and looked back to Bonnie.

"Listen to me, Bonnie. I stuck up for you with the squad. That means I'm counting on you, so don't make a liar out of me. Do the right thing."

With that, Kim jumped out the window and swung away.

Bonnie Rockwaller sat on her bed holding onto her ballet slippers in her hands, slowly caressing the ribbons that were used to bind them to her feet. Drying her face, she wondered what she was going to do now. She tried to figure out if there was some way around it, but...

But then she realized Possible would somehow absolutely nail her hide to the wall if she didn't do it. Why did she have to be the one who was all that?

"This is so unfair.", she muttered to the empty room.

* * *

Jason waited patiently at the steel door, fervantly hoping they wouldn't take so long to unlock it this time. The last time he was late, he almost got stomped in a stampede. Also, he really had to get back to his cell on time today. It had been another long tiring group session of AA which went over deadline again, and the constant grind of hearing a bunch of whackos, junkies, drunks, and some otherwise really sick people either pouring their hearts out, screaming in defiance, cursing, or just babbling nonsense, and expecting the same from him, did nothing to make him think this was going to help him get any better. It wasn't that he didn't want to talk. He certainly did it well enough with the psychiatrists when he was alone with them. It was just that he couldn't see any purpose in doing it at the group sessions. He tried to wash it out of his mind and was rewarded finally when the buzzer rang harshly, opening up the barred frame and letting him and two others through, well ahead of the rush. He walked quickly to his cell and headed for the spare cot there, which was his since he was the newbie. His roommate was some forty year old geezer who was already sick with liver disease from his alcoholism and looked like death warmed over, drawn and thin with a bloated belly. He looked sixty, and was already there in the room, sitting with a lackluster demeanor while he held his scraggly face in his hands. Jason just looked away. It was hard enough to be near him when he snored horribly at night, and he rarely washed. Jason gave him no more than a brief look before sitting down on his cot and reaching down to change his shoes. They only allowed him two pair and one of the group had unfortunately puked during the session, his shoes catching a good part of it. Fortunately, his orange jumpsuit was spared. He had to work quickly as dinner was in ten minutes, and you either showed up on time or you didn't eat.

As he tied on the clean shoes, he mentally noted that he would have just enough time to clean the other pair tonight before lights out. He pulled on the sock on his left foot, managing to slip it underneath the ankle monitor bracelet that all the inmates here at the alcohol rehab were required to wear. All were convicted felons of one sort or another who managed to avoid jail time if they successfully completed rehab. There were locked doors all around, but no wire fence or guards outside. With the bracelets, they weren't needed.

'If only the damn thing didn't chafe', he thought, rubbing his ankle where it was half raw. He finished tying his shoes and reached over to his Bible, wanting to catch up on a couple of verses he was studying before the dinner bell rang, something that had fervently caught his interest over the past few weeks.

'Funny', he thought, 'I never thought much of his religion before all of this happened.'

But he was surprised and pleased how rewarding it had been for him since he seriously started reading the Bible again, ever since his life went to hell in a handbasket, and he had found a good deal of comfort in it. He was turning to the Book of Psalms when he heard a voice that sent chills down his spine.

"Morgan!"

Surprised, his head shot up and he looked up to see the huge uniformed guard looking straight at him. Fear in his eyes, he wondered what he did wrong this time.

"Yes sir!"

"Get your butt up to administration! Now! You have a couple of visitors!"

"But, dinner's about to start..."

The guard's eyes reddened in anger.

"I don't care if it's time for crumpets and tea! Get the hell out of here! _Now!_"

Jason didn't hesitate. He hurriedly put the Bible down and jumped up from the cot, scooting past the guard and quickly running down the hall towards the administration area. He himself was a pretty big guy, but this guard was a real hard case, seven foot two, at least three hundred fifty pounds, and none of it was lard. He wasn't about to give him any excuse to get hassled. Jason ran back to the locked door and was buzzed through as soon as he reached it. The guard on the other side was expecting him, looking at him sourly as he pointed Jason in the direction he was supposed to go, a hallway he had only been down one time before, which was when he first arrived here two weeks before. He slowed down to a walk and kept going. At the end of the hall, he took a turn to the right toward the director's office, where he saw him waiting in the hallway. A questioning look on his face, Jason slowed as he approached the older man.

"Uh, Dr. Leeman? You wanted me?"

Dr. Leeman looked at him with a studious expression. Jason could tell nothing from it.

"Yes, Jason.", he replied, "I wasn't sure I wanted to allow this, but I'm giving you the benefit of the doubt. You seem to have made a good impression on some important people at some point in the past. You've also made pretty good progress here so far, although I must say your group participation is still lacking."

"Uh, yeah."

"In any case,", the director said, letting that go, "there are two gentlemen here who would like to talk to you."

Jason frowned, confused. He had no clue what he was getting at. At first he had thought that maybe it was his parents who had come to visit him, but they would have called ahead, so he would have known.

"Who are they, sir?"

"I'll let them tell you. You can go on in."

The director opened the door next to Jason and waved him in. Jason looked at him momentarily, totally nonplussed, but then did as he was told, walking hesitantly into the room to see two men waiting there, both in coat and tie. One he didn't know, but the other was familiar. He couldn't place him at first.

"Jason?", said the first man, smiling, the one he didn't recognize, "Hi there. Why don't you have a seat? I think there's a lot that we can do for each other."

Jason took a chair opposite the two men across the table from him.

"Uh, what's this all about?"

The other man said, "Jason, I don't know if you remember me, but I'm Max Brody. We met briefly back at Middleton High last fall."

Suddenly it hit him.

"Oh, yeah!", Jason exclaimed gladly, "Scout for the Denver Nuggets!"

"That's right. Do you remember what I told you then?"

Yes, sir,", Jason replied, nodding, "You wanted me to come try out directly for the team after college."

"If you weren't drafted, and you told me that you appreciated the offer but that you hadn't made up your mind which team you wanted to play for."

Jason looked at him sadly, "Yeah, but obviously that's a whole world away and a lifetime ago. That isn't going to happen. So why are you bringing that up now?"

Max glanced down at the table a minute playing with the car keys in his hand, then looked up again.

"There may be something we can do for you after all."

Jason stared at him, unconvinced, "What are you talking about?"

"I want you to meet my friend here. This is Frank Laughton. He's a scout for Benetton Treviso."

"The Italian League?", said Jason, still confused.

"Right.", replied Max, "I think you should listen to what he has to offer."

Jason looked at the lanky middle aged man, his hair silver and thinning, and was met with a pleasant smile and a kind face. He reached over and offered his hand to Jason, who shook it in turn.

"I'm really glad to meet you, Jason. And I'll get to the point. Right now with the trouble they're having with athletes and the law, the NBA isn't going to look at you in your present situation."

Jason snorted derisively, "Tell me about it. So why bring it up?"

"That would normally be the case.", the man replied, "But Max has watched you play several times now, and he has shown me some of your game films as well. I have to agree with him. You have a tremendous talent."

"Thanks.", Jason said morosely, "So what does that have to do with me now? It's like you said. I'm a felon now. A convicted sex offender. What team would give me a shot with that against me?"

Max took a deep breath and let it out before answering, "Son, I don't want to see a gift like yours go to waste, just because you made one mistake. Oh, yeah, it was a huge one, but still, from what I understand you're very unlikely to be a repeat offender according to the reports I received."

Jason looked back and forth between them.

"What reports?", he asked, "How do you know what's going on with me?"

"Let's just say we have our sources.", Frank replied, "Look, we're not trying to spy on you, but if we're going to make you an offer, we have to be absolutely sure it's going to pay off."

"Offer?", Jason said, now completely in the dark, "What are you talking about? How...?"

Max smiled at him, "I know this is confusing, son. Let me explain.

"We know you have to finish alcohol rehab and then counseling for sexual offenders. We know the full details of the events surrounding the crimes of which you were convicted. As I say, we do our homework. We've also talked to a lot of people, trying to feel out what kind of person you really are, including your old coaches and friends. So this is not something we are stepping into lightly.

"Here's the deal. When you finish rehab and counseling, you will have fulfilled the conditions for your treatment and will then start probation from the date you're released. You will be required to report to a probation officer and report your address as a sex offender for the database. Once you do that, and stay clean I might add, then there is something we can do for you. What we want to do is offer you a chance to play ball, starting with Benetton Treviso on their 'B' team."

Jason was floored. This was not possible. How could they make this happen?

"Man, I don't know what you've been smoking.", he said, "But I know a bunch of guys here who would like to have some of it!"

Max and Frank laughed, and Max said, "This is for real, Jason. We can pull this off. I've already contacted our legal department. They assure us that we can argue this successfully with your parole board. We can get you approved for a visa and a passport within six weeks of completion of these programs, and we've worked it out with the other authorities. As soon as that's done, you can be on the first plane out to Italy and to playing professional basketball, earning a salary."

Jason thought he must have looked stupid when he realized his mouth was hanging open and was drooling like a loon. Quickly, he closed his mouth, wiping it on his sleeve.

"I... ...I don't understand. How can you do this?"

"Let's just say we have some clout where athletes of your caliber are concerned.", he replied with a sly grin, "and we can get the district attorney and the judge to sign off on this."

It was like a silly dream. He looked at them like a wide-eyed fool.

"Jeez.", the teenager said in wonderment, "But, is there a catch?"

"Of course.", Max said soberly, "You gotta stay clean. No alcohol. Ever. The first time you're caught drinking, that's it. You're gone. It will be part of the contract. Any trouble with the law, you're gone. Any violation of the terms of your parole, even overseas, you're gone. Overstep any one of these conditions and you will be on the first plane home and out of professional sports for good."

"That includes on the court behavior.", added Frank, "Violations that results in fines or penalties will be grounds for automatic dismissal from the team in your case. That doesn't mean you can't play aggressively. We'll back you all the way as long as you don't overstep good etiquette on the court."

"That line can be pretty fuzzy at times you know.", Jason argued.

"We know.", answered Frank in a resigned manner, "You're just going to have to learn where the boundaries are, and make sure you don't cross them. But that's part of the price you're going have to accept to get this deal. You know, kid, the NBA has had enough of the Ron Artests and others of his ilk in the ranks. They're bad for business, but the truth is that as long as they make the teams money at the end of the day, they'll be tolerated to a certain point.

"In your case, I'll be honest. There were a lot of front office guys against this deal from the start. They didn't want to have to deal with someone with your past. But the clincher is the records we've gotten so far do say there is a strong likelihood of you never repeating your offense, and we've had a strong recommendation to that effect as well from one particular authority, and that had a lot to do with it. The bottom line is we think you've got the talent to make it in the NBA, and we think you'll stay clean. If you do, you'll be a potentially huge draw for whatever team gets you to play for them, even with your past."

Jason nodded, barely understanding through the shock, "I see. But how does Denver figure into this deal?"

"We're involved because if you pan out in the Italian Leagues, we get first shot at you over here."

"Okay, I get it now. But I still would like to go to college."

"Not a problem. We can help you do that part time as you develop your career. Now I want to add, that we'll probably be converting you back to a forward. You can play center for high school, but..."

"Yeah, I know. But that's fine with me. I think I would prefer it."

"Good.", repleid Frank, smiling, "So, what do you say?"

Jason shook his head, not believing what he was hearing. It was too good to be true.

"What can I say?", he said, "My life's dream was professional basketball."

"It still can be, son. Will you do it?"

"How can I refuse? You got your man!"

Max chuckled and smiled, "Good, son, good. We'll get the papers and arrangements ready on our part so that when you finish all this, you can leave as soon as possible for Milan to get ready for this year's season. The Benetton coach has seen your films and wants you on the team. He's been briefed on everything, and is expecting you. Don't worry. We got it all covered."

It was unreal. Was he dreaming? He still couldn't believe it. Were his prayers answered? Jason felt a huge weight had been lifted off his chest that had been there forever, and would have been there all his life. Suddenly there was a light at the end of tunnel, a chance at life actually worth working for. For the first time in more than a year, he smiled his old relaxed confident smile again. Max and Frank got up and headed for the door. Jason followed and the two men met him there and shook his hand. Then he stopped, a sudden frown on his face.

"What is it, son?", asked Max Brody.

"Sir.", Jason said timidly, "I would have one request."

"What's that?"

"I'm willing to admit what I did wrong when it's necessary.", he said, "Right now, not many people know, or care, about it. Still, I don't want it becoming common knowledge if it's at all possible."

Max Brody looked down at the floor and contemplated his request, then slowly nodded.

"Let me work on that, Jason.", he replied with a grin, "I think with time, the PR depertment can help you do that."

Jason smiled his gratitude, "Thank you. Thank you, sir.", and shook his hand again.

"Good luck, son.", Max said, "I'm sure this is going to turn out to be good for all of us."

"I sure hope so, sir.", Jason said, now beaming, "Thank you so much. I promise you I will do my best."

"I know you will, I know. We'll keep in touch and monitor your progress through our contacts. We'll be seeing you."

Max opened the door and let Jason out. Dr. Leeman was waiting on the other side and he smiled when he saw Jason's face.

"Come with me, Jason.", he said, "There are still some things I would like to discuss with you about all this."

"You know?", Jason asked.

"Of course.", the director replied, smiling wider, "I'm essentially the warden, you know, and I really want to help. So let's talk."

He led Jason back down the hallway to the inmate quarters as he began discussing his future. Max and Frank stood there a moment watching them go.

Frank said, "He's going to be good, real good, as long as he stays clean."

"Yep.", said Max, "You know, normally they would never have considered letting him outside the state, much less the country, but it's in place that if he ever ran, someone has guaranteed absolutely to make sure he'll be brought back, someone that we know will absolutely be able to do it."

"So, somebody's always going to be looking out for him to stay the course."

Max took on a perplexed look as he scratched his head, saying, "Yeah, and in more ways than one. Funny you would say that. It was just that one authority, but probably the best one that could speak for him. And you know, it's strange how such a petite little redheaded girl can have so much clout with the law enforcement agencies in this country, but she sure has it."

* * *

She waited all day, sitting on the couch, not moving an inch, her dread building with every passing moment. She was so tense. She couldn't eat a thing all day. When the the door bell rang at the Rockwaller house late in the evening, she almost jumped out of her skin, fear and trepidation invading her mind. She couldn't move at first, but eventually Bonnie got up to answer it. Strangely, it made her momentarily irate.

'Screw trepidation!', she thought, 'I've never been so scared in my life!'

The anger fled, her fear left behind. Hesitantly, but steadily, she walked towards the door and opened it.

Tara stood there, stone still, her face ice cold, a mix of questioning and anger. Bonnie squinted her eyes in surprise, because the nerd was with her. Bonnie had planned this when everyone in her family would be out of the house, so only she and Tara would be there. She didn't expect this.

"I thought you were coming alone.", she said in a small voice.

Tara stared at her suspiciously, "You said you wanted to talk, Bonnie. I'm here. But I want Kevin with me. He can hear everything and anything you have to say to me."

Bonnie looked down for a second, uncertain, trying to think of some way to get her alone. As if he knew what she was thinking, the nerd spoke.

"Tara, I don't mind. I can wait outside."

"No!", she said firmly, "She either speaks to both of us, or to nobody."

Bonnie's heart sank, seeing she had no choice. But then she thought, 'It doesn't matter. He'd be the first one to know after I tell her anyway.'

"Sure.", she replied, "Come on in."

She moved out of the way and let them inside. They went into the living room and Bonnie invited them to take a seat on the couch there.

"Uh, would you like anything to drink?"

Tara glared at her, irritated, "So not in the mood, Bonnie! Just get on with whatever it is you want to say."

"Uh, okay."

Moving slowly, Bonnie sat down in a recliner next to them. She hunched over, holding her hands in her lap, looking down most of the time, not willing to meet Tara's eyes straight on. She had seen Tara was still really angry with her, and Bonnie was so sure this would only get worse once she told her everything. And with Kevin, the nerd with her.

'Oh, hell!' she thought, 'Just start already! Waiting to start is even worse!'

She cleared her throat, then tentatively began.

"Look.", she said, "I... ...I know that, uh, things haven't too good with us lately."

Tara frowned, getting irritated that she was stating the obvious.

"Get on with it, Bonnie.", she snapped.

Bonnie blinked submissively and kept going.

"It's just...", Bonnie stammered, getting a bit braver, "It's just I want to say that... ...that I know that I was really pushing you to date the right kind of guy."

"I _am_ dating the right kind of guy!", Tara retorted.

"Ummm, yeah.", Bonnie said, backing off again, "I don't mean it that way. I guess I mean what I thought was the right kind of guy."

She looked steadily at Tara.

"I am... ...so sorry. I had no idea Jason was as dangerous as that. I would never have tried to fix you up with him if I had any sense he was that kind of person. I still think of you as a friend, and whatever you may think of me, wherever we may end up after this. I really want you to know I would never, ever on purpose expose you to that kind of danger."

Tara was silent. Hoping it went over well, Bonnie looked up at her, trying to gauge the emotion on her face, but it was hard. Tara's face was fixed in a sort of blank, or maybe she was confused. She stared at Bonnie like that for a good while before she answered.

She nodded thoughtfully as she replied, "Okay, Bonnie. I accept that. Maybe you were blind to his drinking and the crazy things he could do. I was the one dating him at the time, so I could see, but I guess you didn't."

Bonnie managed a weak smile, thankful for that much.

"Yeah.", she added, "yeah, and I will admit I was wrong about... ...about Kevin."

The deepest part of her wanted to scream 'Noooo!' as she turned to him, trying to remind her that a nerd is not someone to whom you say this, but in her heart, she knew it was definitely the right thing to do. Or at least it was something she had to do in this particular case.

Swallowing hard, she addressed him, "Kevin, I... ...I want to apologize to you, for everything I did to you. I didn't think much of you, until you proved me wrong. You saved my best friend, and I will always grateful to you for that."

"Thank you, Bonnie," he replied, watching her face closely, "but you still think I'm just some nerd, don't you?"

She did.

Her face showed the conflict in her mind as she started looking around the room, and it embarrassed her that he had read her right. Even though she tried to avoid meeting his eyes, she couldn't. Gathering what little courage she had, she stared right at him. She had to stutter through it, but she answered, wanting this to be completely truthful...

"Well.", she said meekly, "Maybe in some ways I guess, you're kind of weird, to me anyway."

"You always described me as a pathetic loser."

Bonnie fidgeted, more uncomfortable, unable to deny it, "Yeah. Okay, you're right. I did say that, but I'm trying not to be negative here, Kevin. Yes, I thought that way about you, but I... ...Look, I really mean it, Kevin. You've been really cool about this, and I think now you're the best thing that's ever happened to Tara. I do want her to be happy with the guy she wants."

Tara stared at her, totally perplexed.

"Bonnie, I never ever seen you do anything like this before, and I've never seen anyone more anti-nerd than you are. Why the change?"

Bonnie swallowed hard again and looked up at her again, her eyes as sincere as they could be, "I mean it, Tara. Kevin saved you. That amazes me, what he did. I think that if it had been me who was attacked instead of you, even a nerd would be okay in my book if he saved me like that. But I guess maybe, maybe I probably shouldn't call him a nerd."

"I'm not ashamed of it, Bonnie.", said Kevin, "And I think you should consider that nerds are not the social pariahs you make them out to be."

Bonnie blinked, staring at him, not expecting that. Nerds that don't mind being called nerds? That surprised her.

"I guess so.", she replied, sounding only half-convinced.

"It comes down to the whole 'food chain' thing, doesn't it?", he added.

She didn't answer, again at a loss for words.

"Bonnie.", he said softly, "Why is it that people like me who aren't pretty..."

"Hey!", Tara interrupted, halfway serious, "You're gorgeous! I say so and don't you forget it!"

"Okay, okay!", he said chuckling, "But you're biased."

Tara just 'hrmmphhed' as she looked back at Bonnie. The brief levity over, Kevin's face became somber again.

He repeated, "Why is it there are people who aren't pretty or who excel at their scholastics but don't fit in well with their peers, who are awkward in social situations, or especially aren't so well endowed as, say, you or Brick... ...Look, I'm not trying to attack you, really, or come back at you, or put you down. I just really want an honest answer. Why is it that you create this status structure that makes people like me less than human beings to you?"

Bonnie looked at him with a blank stare, unsure of what he wanted. She could see he was definitely sincere, not wanting to disparage her. His voice was very soft, not threatening in any way. He really just wanted to understand. And she just didn't have a good answer. But she tried...

"I... ...I... ...guess", she said, stammering as she bared her thoughts as best she could, "I guess it's a way for those of us who aren't, uh, so nerdy... ...Sorry, maybe I should use another word... ..I guess it's a way for those of us who aren't, uh, so less gifted, I guess, to get ahead. We have, uh, certain advantages which should be taken advantage of, you know? To get ahead. I mean, well, you know. We're all competing for the best things in life. It's easy to see how good, or bad, the competition is. I mean people like Tara and me, we have to have the social skills and the, uh, assets to succeed where others don't. And of course looks do count, even if that seems kind of shallow. But that is a reality of life, you know. And other people who are usually so, you know, unattractive? I guess? I mean they are less likely to make it, you know what I mean?"

"Do you really believe that?", Kevin asked almost incredulously, "that people like me can't succeed as well or better than you? Just because we aren't cool?"

Bonnie stopped short, thinking about that. She certainly thought it was true, but the way Kevin responded suddenly put her in doubt.

"Uh, I didn't say that exactly right."

"So is that all?", Kevin asked, "Their looks and coolness are all that matters?"

"No!", Bonnie replied quickly, "Not completely. But they are so, err, unappealling in the other ways too. Maybe it would be easier to enjoy being around them if they were cooler."

Kevin gazed at her, "But people have different ideas on what's appealing, or even what's cool, Bonnie. In addition, some people simply can't measure up physically the way you think they should. You can't dismiss them for that."

"But I"m not trying to make people out to be less than human!"

"Aren't you?", replied Kevin, puzzled and frowning at her, "You don't think giving Jermaine Hall a wedgie so hard that he couldn't walk straight for a week as treating him as sub-human? Or gluing Rick Simon's glasses to his head with super glue so hard they had to take him to the hospital to get them off. Or making the debate team starve at the end of the line in cafeteria just because the football team didn't want to look at them?"

Bonnie looked away, "Well, the guys were just having fun with them. I mean, they do that stuff to each other, too. Besides, they are boys. Uh, no offense."

"None taken. But Bonnie, it may be fun to the jocks, amongst themselves. That's part of their culture, and though you girls don't usually do those sort of physical things, your comments and attitudes more than make up for it."

Bonnie bit her lip and looked down at the floor.

"The main thing, Bonnie, is that sort of attitude isn't funny to the ones who aren't part of your 'food chain' circle. It's cruel. And while they may not have your 'social skills' as you say, that doesn't mean they can't be social. It's your artificial definition of that which puts them down in your view, and those with you."

Bonnie's mouth tightened up in a thin lopsided line.

"Okay, I admit I didn't expect you to be able to do what you did. That's mybad. So, I guess you're right. It is sort of harsh."

"And the 'food chain' hierarchy really is responsible for a lot of it.", added Kevin, "You can't put yourself above these people no matter how much you may dislike them or think them a threat, or how different they may be. It's wrong."

Bonnie looked away again, fidgeting and mumbling, "I wasn't trying to hurt anyone."

"Bonnie.", Kevin said, "Just thinking that way hurts people, mostly yourself."

She looked at him, her face a mixture of increasing guilt, worry, and fear. She could hear truth of what he was saying, and it was humiliating. Despite all the logic she had lived with all her life, that had come down from her sisters as she grew up, that she had accepted as gospel, it was completely negated by eveything he had just said. Deep down in her soul, it hit her just right. As much as hurt, it made sense. She wished it didn't, and couldn't understand why or how. But it felt right, and it helped reinforce her determination to say what she was going to tell them next.

"Yeah", she said in a resigned tone.

She became tense.

"Yeah. I think I know that now, and I think you're probably right...", she whispered, "Because... ...well... ...it's my fault."

Tara frowned at her.

"What do you mean? What's your fault?"

"What Jason did to you."

Tara stared at her, confused. She blinked a couple of times before she spoke again.

"What are you talking about? I know you kept trying to set me back up with him and all that, but that doesn't make you responsible for the attack."

"But I am responsible. I was there.", she said almost inaudibly, sheer fear oozing out of her.

Tara's face went pale, stunned, staring at Bonnie, whose anguished eyes slowly spilled two tears onto her cheeks.

"What?", she said in a breathless voice of sheer disbelief.

Bonnie withered under the hot glare, but couldn't stop. She knew that. She had to finish this.

"I told Jason about you and Kevin taking walks back home in the evenings.", she said, her voice quavering, "I told him that because I wanted... ...I wanted Kevin to start another fight with him. I was going to get proof he really started the first fight, so I brought the video camera..."

Tara was shaking so hard, she could barely sit still. She had grabbed Kevin's hand so hard, it hurt. Her face was white, her features twisted into a pasty bug-eyed, open mouthed glare. Kevin, staring just as wide eyed and as shocked as she was, saw the sheer rage playing across her face at that moment. She said nothing. She couldn't. He could tell she was too furious. Bonnie lost it then, hanging her head down with her brown bangs hiding her face as she quietly sobbed.

As if in a trance, Tara rose up from the couch and strode stiffly away into the kitchen. She walked to the end of the room and stood there motionless, a stone statue, looking out the window over the breakfast nook, completely silent as her hands clasped the back of one of the chairs there in a death grip. Kevin watched her a second, and when he was convinced she wasn't going anywhere or would do anything else, he got down off the couch on one knee and put a hand on Bonnie's shoulder.

"Bonnie?", he asked, "Were you the one who turned the tape into the police?"

Still sobbing, she nodded her bowed head, wringing her hands in her lap.

"I know you quit the squad, Bonnie. Is this why?"

Still crying, she nodded again, then reached up and dried her tears momentarily.

She sniffled and said, "I'm sorry, Kevin! I couldn't face her! I couldn't!", then broke down crying again.

Kevin nodded to himself as he digested this, then got up and went into the kitchen. Tara had not moved, her eyes boring into the darkness outside the window, her face a complete blank. The rage he has seen earlier had been replaced by a cold hardness he didn't like.

"Talk to me, Tara.", he said.

She didn't respond right away. But after a minute.

"How could she?", she said in an icy whisper, "How could she do something that low? How could she hurt me like that?"

"She didn't, Tara. She was after me, not you."

She looked at him, her face stern.

"But she's responsible, Kevin! It's her fault I was attacked!"

"Yes, she bears some blame, but not all of it. The most important thing is she never intended for you to get hurt. She had no idea Jason was going to go after you like that. It was stupid and infantile, yes, but not malicious."

"It was malicious towards you!" she vehemently riposted, her voice rising to a sharp hiss, "And she had the gall to just sit there and videotape it? She did _nothing_ to help?"

"What was she going to do, Tara?", Kevin asked, "Did you expect her to take Jason on, drunk and crazy as he was? Was she going to risk getting attacked and hurt by him, too? Was she going to tell her friend she stood by and did nothing to stop the attack, even though she couldn't?"

She stared at him, unable to answer. He was making too much sense.

"Besides,", he added, "she did help the only way she could. Who do you think turned in the videotape to the police?"

She gasped, taken aback as she suddenly realized it.

"Oh my God." she whispered in awe as it hit her, "You're right. I thought it was one of Jason's friends. But... ...but that had to be how, isn't it?... ...Oh, God..."

She took a deep breath and looked away, thinking it through, reasoning it out and trying not to let her anger bias her judgement. After a time, the rage started to drain away then, replaced by a sadness and an ache in her soul, and she needed to not be alone.

"Hold me.", she whispered, and he gathered her into his arms.

They stood there like that silently, no sound audible except for Bonnie still crying quietly in the living room. After several minutes, that finally abated as well, although they could still hear her sniffle every now and then. It seemed she didn't move from where she was sitting. But what mattered to Tara now was that she felt secure and safe in Kevin's arms. She needed that right then, not wanting to leave them, but eventually she knew she had to do something about this. Her head laying on his shoulder, she sighed in resignation.

"I can't do it, Kevin.", she said quietly, "I can't hate her. She can be such an idiot at times, but she's still my friend."

Kevin chuckled and let her pull back a bit, leaning his forehead into hers.

He smiled, gazing lovingly into her eyes as he said, "Well, you're going to have to forgive her, then."

Calmly, she drank in that love of his, inhaling it directly into her soul through her eyes. She knew he was right, but there was something about the way he looked at her that made it so much easier.

"I will. God, if I could forgive Jason, I should be able to do this."

Then a look of wide-eyed realization hit her and she said, "Oh, my God! This is why she quit the squad, isn't it?"

Kevin silently nodded, then added, "She told me back there she was too ashamed to face you, and I think too scared to admit it, until tonight. You have to give her credit. She took a risk doing this. She's totally at your mercy now."

She looked up, confused again.

"What do you mean?"

"You could turn her in to the police."

Tara stared at him in horror, "Kevin! No! I... ...God, this is so hard. Jason was one thing, but I understand that technically she may have committed a crime here, but I won't do that. I've had enough of lawyers and police, and courts!"

Kevin gathered her back to him, hugging her close, "I didn't think you would, my queen. I was just pointing it out because she was brave enough to tell you and risk it."

"Not really.", came a whisper from the kitchen entrance.

They looked over and saw Bonnie standing there. She had managed to collect herself together and was at the doorway looking like a bedraggled rag doll, her arms wrapped around herself, her face a mess from the crying. Slowly, Tara let go of Kevin and faced her.

"Why?", she asked.

"It was Kim.", Bonnie started hesitantly, "It was Kim who first figured it out. Her techno-nerd, uh, computer whiz kid found my car was parked near the street by the running track we sometimes used in that park. Apparently he can get satellite photos of things like that. Anyway, she put two and two together and figured out I was there, and what I did. So about a week ago, she paid me a visit, telling me she knew all about it. She told me that it would come out anyway, and that I might as well spill."

"I see", Tara said, "She said to the squad that you had some 'issues' you were working out and that you would get through them and make it back, before she told me privately you had quit."

A thought came to her, "Bonnie. She stuck up for you even when she knew what happened, didn't she?"

"Uh-huh.", Bonnie admitted numbly, "I still can't believe she did that."

"That's because she is who she is."

Bonnie nodded, "Okay. As much as I hate to admit it, I finally figured that out, I think. But you have to understand, Tara. It took me a week to get up the courage to do this. I even tried to call Kim and see if she would come over and help me, but she's gone on another one of those ridiculous missions of hers! Somewhere in Africa I heard."

"So you had to do this alone."

The tears started again as Bonnie took a couple of steps towards her.

"I swear to you. I _never_... ..._ever_ intended for you to be hurt, Tara.", she said, the anguish taking over her face again, "I would never do that to my best friend."

She started crying openly again.

"I just want my best friend back.", she sobbed softly.

Tara didn't move for a few moments, gazing at Bonnie as her heart finally thawed at her friend's tears, then she sighed deeply and stepped towards her, holding her arms out.

"Come here, you.", she said.

Bonnie fell into her arms and started sobbing again on her shoulders, this time in relief, as Tara hugged her close for some time, enough to let her cry it out.

"It's all right now, Bonnie. It's all right.", she said to soothe her, "I forgive you, on one condition."

"What's... ...what's that.", Bonnie sputtered between sobs.

"You stay the _hell_ out of my love life!"

Bonnie couldn't help starting to laugh through the tears. Tara pulled back and grinned at her.

"Okay?", she asked pointedly.

Bonnie smiled and began wiping her eyes dry, sniffling as she replied, "I am _so_ done with that, Tara!"

"Good. You gonna be all right now?"

Bonnie swallowed and managed to calm herself again, "Yeah, I will be, I think."

"Good. Memorial Day's coming this weekend. We still need some help with the choreography and we're practicing Friday. You coming?"

Bonnie finished wiping the tears from her face and smiled, saying, "I'll be there."

**The final chapter will be posted tomorrow on Memorial Day, which is fitting as the chapter itself deals with Memorial Day and what it stands for in many ways. The Epilogue will follow on Monday.**


	16. Chapter 15

**Author's Note: This is the final chapter, with only the epilogue to follow. This is my favorite chapter by far. When I first started reading Campy's "Mating Games" story about Tara and Kevin, I was moved by the concept of the chess captain winning the cheerleader, but what made me realize I had to write this story was when I read about Tara reminiscing about her grandfather, missing him and regreting how she had not been there at the end of his life. I immediately knew then that the story had to be expanded, and the love between these two characters and Tara's relationship with her grandfather became the driving forces for this saga, and it ultimately brought about the culmination within this chapter.**

**With Memorial Day comes many emotions and feelings, and remembrance of lost ones who gave their lives in defense of this country. There are many stories of sheer bravery by which to remember them as we keep those heroes alive in our hearts. Although my description of the expoits of Tara's grandfather are created for this story, it is not so far different from the true stories of many, many heroes whose valorous actions are well recorded for posterity. Tara's grandfather is fictional, but the military units and the web site that tells the stories of their heroes that I have noted here are real, and those web sites regarding those military units can be visited to learn about many such tales of heroism. It is only appropriate that I finish this story on a note of remembrance for the fallen heroes on the very day which we have reserved to remember them so well.**

**And so it is to them, the fallen heroes, to whom I will dedicate this story on this Memorial Day. May God bless them all.**

**Chapter Fifteen**

**Remembrance of the Fallen**

Sunrise on the Sunday of Memorial Day Weekend revealed a clear blue sky with the prospects of beautiful weather. The temperature went up quickly as the sun rose further into the firmament, its brilliant glow promising to make the day wonderfully warm. The previous day, Tara had accompanied Kevin to his synagogue for the first time wanting to know more about his faith, to experience it first hand. This day, Kevin accompanied her to church services in the morning, where the congregation gave thanks for the veterans of the country's wars, as they had done at the synagogue the day before. Everyone was dressed up for the event. Kevin was in suit and tie and Tara was wonderfully adorned in a blue floral print dress that fit the occasion, wearing her grandmother's pearls which she had inherited.

This was followed at noon by a wonderful picnic sponsored by the high school in Middleton Park. American flags adorned the brightly decorated picnic tables and the school band had set up in the gazebo. After a late lunch, the crowd settled down to listen to the concert of patriotic music as Steve Barkin played emcee and kept things rolling along smoothly. Later on, the cheer squad performed to rave reviews from the audience, and the entire squad was now present, Bonnie finally having returned from her leave of absence.

The previous Friday, the girls were pleasantly surprised and relieved when she showed up with Tara and they found out the feud was finally over. Tara explained to the squad that she and Bonnie had settled their differences and that they were ready to get the team back on track. She didn't elaborate any further than that, but at that point the squad didn't mind. They were just glad the fight had ended. Bonnie looked a whole lot happier and more at ease, and the rest of the squad couldn't have been more pleased now that she wasn't being snarky any more. It showed that afternoon, too. She was instrumental in getting their performance back to perfection in just that one practice, which was accomplished in spite of a critical setback.

Kim had unexpectedly been sidelined for the first time ever from a major performance with the cheer squad. Her last mission had nearly been a disaster of epic proportions for her and Ron, resulting in her suffering significant injuries, including a broken leg. Fortunately, none of her injuries were permanent, but with a cast on her leg, not even the legendary Kim Possible was going to be able to perform with the squad this time. And so, for the first time in her high school career, Bonnie took over as sole head cheerleader for the day and was in full charge of the program, finishing it in grand style by landing on the top of the Dog House pyramid in perfect balance, smiling widely at the adulation of the audience, and even Kim applauded her and the squad with a contented smile of her own, showing no sign of jealousy at all.

After the performance, they all changed back into their formal attire for the ongoing festivities, including a late dinner buffet. Tara and Kevin visited friends amongst the crowd holding hands as they went along, stopping by where the cheer squad had gathered with their BF's. Bonnie was there too, with Brick, somewhat subdued, but looking extremely satisfied with the way things had gone. She actually looked happy for once, even with the attention no longer on her after the performance. The squad had gathered around Kim and Ron, all wanting to know about what the news of the day called the most dangerous adventure they had ever experienced in their lives. It was all over the TV channels and the internet. Both of them certainly bore stark evidence of the mission from all the bandaged cuts and bruises. Kim was wearing the walking cast on her broken right leg. Ron had one on his fractured left forearm. They had also suffered several fractured ribs each, which made them both walk rather gingerly. But the remarkable thing to Tara as she watched them was that she had never seen them so happy together. There was the unmistakable glow about the two of them, and she could swear that Kim looked at Ron now just like she looked at Kevin. Something incredibly life changing had happened between them on this last mission. Before it, they were just boyfriend/girlfriend. But now...

Now she was sure they were exactly like she and Kevin. Somehow, some way, so incredibly in love with each other, and she was happy that Kim had found a love as strong as the one she had with Kevin.

The other girls were still pressing Kim for news and details of the mission. Fortunately for them, they were the only ones this day who Kim and Ron would tell about that mission, and it was fortunate Kim and Ron wouldn't have to repeat it. The news hounds has left off chasing them for the duration of the weekend after Kim had promised to hold a formal interview with them on Monday morning to answer all their questions. But even as the squad pressed her for tidbits of information, she downplayed the whole thing and tried to steer the conversation back to the great performance of the squad, even praising Bonnie's leadership, which in response Bonnie for once remained uncharacteristically demure. Even Ron was being quiet and supportive of Kim, not saying much, definitely a change from his usual bombastic nature, and Tara felt such a friendship with all of them that day, until a voice came in over the conversation.

Tara heard her name called from behind her. She turned to see who it was, and stopped dead still in her tracks. She was surprised to see he was there. The rest of the squad also looked up to see who it was. All conversation ceased as they stared. Wary, Tara lost her smile, wondering what it was he could possibly want with her. Jeremy Wendell stood there fidgeting, well dressed in suit and tie, grinning easily, but still looking a little nervous through his plastic smile.

"Hey, Tara.", he said in a little too familiar fashion, "Uh, could I speak to you in private?"

Not appreciating his tone, Tara looked coldly at him and replied, "Anything you have to say, you can say here, Jeremy."

He didn't expect that, and it didn't sit well with him. His fidgeting got worse. The rest of the squad and their BF's kept staring at him suspiciously. He looked back at them edgily trying to think how he was going to do this. But seeing no other way, he finally turned back to Tara.

"Look, Tara." he said tentatively, "I just wanted to say. Actually the guys on the basketball team, too, so I'm kinda saying it for them. I just wanted to say we're sorry."

A thin, forced smile came over Tara's face as she looked down a moment before answering.

'Took him long enough!', she thought. But she realized at least he was saying it now, so he deserved some props.

"I appreciate that, Jeremy.", she replied evenly.

Jeremy ducked his head slightly, having the decency to look a little embarrassed.

"We had no idea he was going to...", he stuttered, "Uh, you know. He was drunk."

"I know, Jer.", she said, irritated, her voice a little hard, "And I do know you guys wouldn't have gone along with anything like that. You all may be 'food chain' addicts, but you're not monsters."

"Uh, yeah.", he said, ignoring the barb, " It's just. Well, it's just that it's not really his fault, you know."

"Oh, yes it is.", Kevin interjected quietly, but forcefully.

Jeremy glared at him.

"I wasn't talking to you, shrimp!"

"Tough. I'm talking to you, and you'll listen."

Suddenly angry, Jeremy moved towards him, his hands balling up, but stopped short when the others gathered around, almost surrounding Kevin protectively. Wide-eyed, Jeremy stopped and backed up a step as Kim quickly came forward, facing him down with silent fury on her face.

She said in a low voice, "Just because I have this cast on with six broken ribs, don't you _dare _think I can't paste the ground with your carcass ten times over! So cool it!"

He knew she could do it. Jeremy could only blink, suitably cowed, but he held his ground. He didn't expect this kind of reaction from the cheer squad, and couldn't think of a reply. His initiative gone, Kevin came forward and faced him, looking him straight in the eye as he calmly spoke.

"Look, Jeremy,", he said thoughtfully, "We all know Jason's an alcoholic, and a bad one. I'm sorry that he had to leave school and go into rehab, but that's the price he had to pay. It was jail otherwise, which would have been worse. I understand he didn't know what he was doing, but he was still responsible for it because he chose to drink. So, yes, it is his fault. And he has to own up to it. The sooner he realizes that, the sooner he'll get better."

He paused. The tension between the two of them was palpable. Jeremy glared at him, not willing to accept him on any kind of an equal basis, facing him in a threatening posture. But that didn't stop Kevin from continuing on.

"Because of what you've done here,", he said, "I have more respect for you now. You had the guts to come over here and take some responsibility for your actions, both for yourself and on behalf of your friends, and you tried to stick up for Jason. That tells me you know how to be a friend, and that's a good thing. But I m telling you, you gotta understand what Jason's problem is, and that he _is_ responsible for what he did. The sooner you do, the sooner you'll be able to help him as a friend to deal with it."

Jeremy continued to glare at him, stone faced, saying nothing in return, trying to out-stare him, but he couldn't hold out against Kevin's steady gaze, finally backing down and looking away.

"Uh, yeah.", he muttered, "Okay, I get it."

He turned back to Tara and said, "I just wanted to say I'm sorry."

Then he swiftly turned on his heel, shoulders hunched over, and he walked away quickly, hands in his pockets and looking at the ground. As they watched him stride off, Kevin turned to Tara.

"You all right?"

Tara looked back at him, smiling, "I'm fine. And you were great. You're the bravest person I know."

She leaned over and kissed him softly.

"You can say that again.", said Ron, smiling and holding Kim close.

She looked up at Ron and smiled, a look of adoration on her face as she said softly, "Well, not in my book, you know."

Ron chuckled and caressed her arm as Kim, laying her head on her BF's shoulder, gazed at Kevin knowingly with a big smile. But Kevin was still looking in the direction Jeremy had walked off.

"Uh-oh.", he said.

Everyone looked up again to see Jeremy coming back. When he reached the group again, he flashed a quick, nervous glance at Kevin, then looked at Tara once more. This time his attitude was no longer quite so brazen, and when he spoke it was more conciliatory.

"Look, Tara, there's something I really need to say to you alone. Please."

Frowning at him, Tara was unsure. She glanced over at Kevin, the question being put to him as to what he thought. He was scrutinizing Jeremy, then looked back at her with a benign face.

"It's up to you, Tara. I don't think it will hurt."

She nodded slightly and faced Jeremy.

"Okay,", she replied with some reservation, "Let's go over there."

Jeremy smiled slightly, glad she had agreed, and they both walked a short distance to a large tree, still well in sight of the cheer squad but out of earshot. No one else was nearby. Once they stopped there, Jeremy started fidgeting again, trying to find something to look at besides her as he spoke up.

"Tara, I just wanted to say. I saw Jason at the courthouse at sentencing."

Tara groaned quietly to herself. She did not want to hear this, and Jeremy was quick to pick up her distress.

"No, Tara! It's not what you think!", he said quickly, "I'm not asking you for anything. I just want to give you a message."

Her face stern, she stared at him, saying, "Jer, I don't know."

"Look, I am not in any way excusing what Jason did. I want you to know that. I should have said that from the beginning, but, well, you know, I was trying to help him."

"I understand that."

"I figured you would. But he is my friend, Tara, and I want to help him now. When he asked me to do this, I thought it was reasonable, considering. But you have the last word. So, I'll give you the message, if you're willing to hear it."

She really didn't want to do it. But it was nothing more than words, and Jeremy had gone to this much trouble for him.

"Okay. I'll hear what he has to say."

Jeremy relaxed and took a deep breath, licking his lips as he prepared to say something he obviously had worked on for a while in his mind.

"The first thing he wanted me to tell you.", he began, "is how really, really sorry he is. He doesn't remember anything at all about it, Tara, none of it."

"I know."

Jeremy went on, "After he was arrested, he was totally a different guy than you've ever seen. And I swear to you he broke down when I first saw him after he got bail. I never saw a guy collapse like that. I swear. That's the only time I've ever seen him cry."

Tara looked at him in consternation, surprised, and not sure if she believed that.

Jeremy continued, "In court, when he went before the judge, he didn't contest anything. He was willing to accept anything they did to him, and he's really given up drinking. He's lucky the judge was so lenient, since this was a first time offense. No jail time, just rehab, probation, and being off the team. Plus, he's suspended so he'll have to come back next year to graduate."

"Yes.", she responded, getting a little impatient, "I know all that."

"It could have been worse, and he knows that. Tara, he's not asking to see you. The only thing he's asking is that someday you could find a way to forgive him."

Tara nodded silently for several moments after he finished. Jeremy was looking at the ground again, his eyes darting back to her every now and then, but she could now see that he truly was sincere. This didn't change her opinion that he was still a jerk, but at least he was basically a fairly decent guy.

"Kevin is right.", she began softly, "You do know how to be a good friend, Jer. And I'm glad Jason has you around to help. It's also good Jason understands he shouldn't try to see me, because I don't want to ever see him again. Not because I hate him. I... ...don't. But it's too painful."

"Uh-huh", Jeremy said, "I think I understand."

"But still..."

He looked at her again, seeing anger rise out of her eyes as she paused momentarily.

"You know, Jeremy." she began, "All of you guys have been carrying on about this 'food chain' crap for so long. You have got to stop it! Being the jock or the cheerleader or whatever doesn't mean a damn thing in the end if you aren't a good person underneath it. And I'm going to give you the best example I know. Because if you really want to know who's on top of the food chain, all you have to do is look right over there!"

Staring straight into his eyes, Tara's outstretched arm was clearly pointing at Kevin, who just then was talking to Jess and Hope.

Jeremy saw where she was pointing and ducked his head. His tone was still deferential as he answered.

"Okay, Tara. I'll admit I was a little wrong about him. Even though he's a nerd, he's actually kind of cool, and I know he's your boyfriend and all that, and you think that much of him, and he's got some cred with me and the boys now, especially after the way he stood up to Jason."

Tara gawked at him.

"That's it?", she asked, the bile rising in her gut, "That's all you think of him?"

Jeremy stared back at her, confused.

"Huh?"

She frowned hard, yelling, "Man, you don't know the half of it!"

Perplexed, he kept staring at her, eyebrows raised.

"You really don't get it, do you?", she said in a low angry voice, "How do you think Jason got so lucky with the judge? Do you have any idea of how terrified I was that night? Do you have even an inkling of how much I wanted to hurt Jason, to get back at him, to put him in prison for as long as I could? God, Jeremy! I wanted to really kill him! Honest to God, take his life! Can you understand that?"

Jeremy's face paled, and he swallowed hard.

"It was Kevin!", she screamed at him, "Jason almost killed Kevin too! And _still_ it was Kevin who saved him! It was Kevin who asked the judge for leniency! The way he saw it, he thought Jason would be a responsible person as long as he stayed away from alcohol! He felt Jason had to pay a penalty, but he didn't want to ruin his life! He wanted Jason to have a chance at a future!"

She calmed down, no longer screaming, but still spoke angrily, "It was Kevin who showed me how to finally forgive him! Yes, I forgive him. But I cannot forget, and Kevin won't either! That's why the restraining order is in place and a provision exists for reinstatement of the original sentences if he ever drinks again! And if either I or Kevin ever hear of Jason even touching another drop of alcohol again, so help me, I _will_ nail him to the wall for it! Because I don't _ever_ want another girl to go through what I experienced!"

Jeremy Wendell was paralyzed, more shocked than he had ever been in his life. He gawked at her, his mouth quivering slightly back and forth. But no sound came out, and Tara wasn't through with him.

"Now, I'm telling you, Jeremy. That little 'shrimp' as you've always called him, is the biggest man on the field, bar none, and neither you, nor Jason, nor any of your so called 'food chain' buddies will _ever, _ever come close to being as cool as he is!"

Finally finding his tongue, he sputtered, "Okay, okay, Tara! I hear you! I can see you really care for him and all. But, I mean, really, you don't have to carry on like you're gonna marry the geek!"

Tara's face went cold, her voice again rising in rage with every word she said, "Geek? You still think he's just a geek? Let me tell you something, you jackass! I love that 'geek' more than anything. And if he ever asks me, I _will_ marry him. And you can shout that to the world for all I care! You got that?"

Tara's gaze bored white hot into him for several moments just to make sure he got the point. All he could do was stare wide-eyed at her, stunned into motionlessness except for the slight nod of his head.

"Good!", she said, and walked away, feeling so incredibly vindicated she had said it, and then realizing what she said and not believing she really _had_ just said it.

'Oh, my God. I _did_ just say that!', she thought to herself. She kept thinking it to herself over and over. She knew she felt that way. She just didn't know she would admit it so easily in public.

Tara left Jeremy there looking like he was just dropped on some alien planet, dazed and lost as he gazed around the park aimlessly, his features expressionless and numb. And as she walked back to the cheer squad, she realized more and more with every step how comfortable she was with every word she had spoken to him, feeling better and better as she neared the man she now had absolutely no doubt in the world would be the one with whom she would spend the rest of her life. As she neared him, she saw Kevin had watched her last exchange with Jeremy, his eyebrows furrowed in concern. But she felt so wonderful, knowing she had no reservations at all concerning him now, and the way she walked showed it. She would accept a proposal from him when he asked, and she was sure he would.

When she arrived back at the group, he asked, "Everything okay?"

She reached over and pulled his face to her, planting a very juicy kiss on her surprised boyfriend.

"I'm great, honey!" she said when she came up for air, "And I have never felt so good in my life about telling someone off! Now, let's go get some more food!"

Everyone agreed heartily and they all got up and moved back towards the buffet line.

* * *

Later that afternoon, Tara's parents picked them up to go to the cemetery, but as they were driving down the road, her father turned the car back towards the house.

Puzzled, she asked her mother, "Are we going home first?"

Her mother looked at her thoughtfully and answered, "Yes, dear. There 's something I have to get before we go see your grandparents."

Tara thought nothing more of it and waited quietly until they pulled into the driveway. They all got out of the car and entered the foyer. But there, her parents and Kevin stood still, somewhat expectantly.

Confused, her eyebrows raised up in concern as she looked at them, saying only, "What?"

Her mother smiled and replied quietly, "We have something to show you, honey. It's up in your room."

She led the way as Tara followed, the men behind her. They climbed the stairs and turned left down the hallway into Tara's room. As she went through the doorway, Tara immediately noticed the difference. She gasped quietly, her hand clasping over her mouth.

It was on the near wall next to her door. The display case was made of a rich solid red oak, stained with a dark maple varnish in a gloss shine. Safety glass covered a soft green felt which made up the background for the elements that were on display. In the center was the flag still folded in its triangular shape, an American flag decal placed above and on the left side. To the right was a military unit patch, and Tara realized it was the old Army Air Force unit with which her grandfather had fought in the war. To the left was the DFC, displayed with a description of the medal underneath and the reasons for which it was given. There was also some formal text posted next to it which Tara didn't immediately recognize. Further to the left was the picture of the castle and the princess. It had been carefully lifted off the top of the Box and fixed to heavy cardboard stock to protect it. To the left of that, at the end of the display, were some of the pictures of her and her grandfather, displayed in a vertical column. To the right of the flag was a large empty space of about a foot and a half before coming to the other end where the rest of the pictures from the Box were positioned. On the glass itself, centered at the bottom directly in front of the base of the flag was a shiny brass name plate, embossed in a cursive writing script saying the following:

"_In Remembrance of Lt. Col. James Jackson Mallory, United States Army Air Corps, Ret."_

Tara was dumbstruck. She hadn't looked at the Box for some time. Kevin had been so great for her that she hadn't needed to, and she had forgotten when her mother said she would put the items all in a display for her. She looked at her in awe.

"Oh, my God! Mom! It's so beautiful! Thank you!"

She approached it and gently placed a hand over the glass slowly tracing an outline of the flag and the DFC. She stopped and read the description of the medal, the one Kevin had showed her so long ago on his laptop, but her attention was soon centered on the unfamiliar formal text to the left of it.

"_For conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty as a pilot in the 61__st__ Fighter Squadron, 56__th__ Fighter Group, Eighth Air Force, on December 11, 1943, while flying bomber escort on a mission to Emden, Germany. After scoring a kill on an attacking Bf-110 enemy fighter in his P-51B Mustang, and injured from enemy anti-aircraft fire with heavily bleeding leg wounds that threatened his consciousness, Lt. Mallory was ordered to accompany five damaged B-17 bombers back to base along with three other damaged or injured P-51 fighters from his squadron. Despite heavy harassment by enemy fighters back to the British coast, and the loss of his three comrades to enemy action, Lt. Mallory succeeded under extreme danger in keeping enemy fighters from attacking the bombers under his protection, repeatedly repelling them while so injured and losing blood. Even when the group was attacked yet again over the English Channel by five Me -109's, Lt. Mallory rose to the challenge and counterattacked the five enemy aircraft, giving the bombers the opportunity to escape danger and allowing them to land safely back on base. Under the continuing danger of enemy action, Lt. Mallory succeeded in downing one more enemy aircraft before he himself was shot down, being able to make a deliberate wheels up landing in the water. Now further injured with two broken legs, he then escaped his plane and remained in the cold water for over an hour before his rescue by seaplane once the enemy aircraft were driven off by supporting air units at the scene. Lt. Mallory's exceptionally valiant action and selfless devotion to his bomber detail and squadron mates sustain and enhance the highest traditions of the U.S. Army Air Corps._"

Stunned, Tara exhaled her held breath sharply, a quick soft cry of remorse in it. She turned to her mother with tears in her eyes.

"Why didn't he tell us?", she asked brokenly through those tears.

Jill Monroe, her husband standing behind and holding her when she had quietly started crying as well, replied, "Honey, I only knew he earned the medal protecting bombers on a mission, no more than that. I pressed him further just once, but he absolutely refused to talk about it. He said he didn't want to be reminded of that day ever again. I told him I just wanted to know, to understand, but he would only say that there were three pilots that were lost on that mission, and that they were his best friends. He always felt guilty that he survived when they didn't. He never spoke about it after that. I never asked him again."

Tara looked back at the display, her eyes reflecting the pain she felt for her grandfather having to endure that all of his life. Then unable to hold her emotions in any further, she turned and embraced her mother, both quietly sobbing as Tara's father gently stroked her hair, his own eyes watering up.

It took some time, but when she was able to recover well enough, Jill said through her tears, "Tara, I need you to know something. I didn't know any of this until this morning. The display was brought over and your father put it up on the wall after you and Kevin had left for the picnic."

Sniffling, Tara pulled back and looked at her, puzzled, "But then how did you get the information? Who got it for you?"

Her eyes shining through the tears, Jill said, "Honey, Kevin asked me if he could have this case built for you. He was the one who found out what had happened."

Tara turned and stared at him in wide-eyed surprise. Kevin stood there, frozen in place, silently crying himself. He couldn't hold it together either when he saw how Tara had responded to his gift. He gulped once, standing there uncomfortably under her gaze, his throat clogged from the sheer amount of feeling in the room, and it was a little while before he finally was able to breathe well enough to answer.

"Your mother did help.", he said a little haltingly at first, "But I really wanted to make this special for you. You see, I didn't want you to be sad about not being there when your grandfather passed away. I thought if I could find out what happened, it would make you feel better about that. So I looked his name up on the internet, and got a hit on the web page to the Eighth Air Force museum. From there, I was able to get a description of the battle for which he was awarded the medal. It just seemed right to put a record of what he accomplished next to the medal in the case. I knew you wanted to have the case for your grandfather's things, so I asked your mother if I could do it for you."

" _Oh God._', she thought, '_How did I ever find someone this caring?_'

Her face transfigured into an incredible mix of angst and bliss, and she left her mother's arms for Kevin's. Embracing him, she passionately kissed him as long as she could hold her breath, then hugged him close and cried happily into his shoulder as he kept on kissing her cheek, pressing his face into her neck. Her parents looked on smiling, both of them very proud.

"Kevin Guberman, I so love you.", she whispered, holding him tightly and continuing to cry softly with small sobbing heaves.

"And I love you.", he replied just as quietly, crying with her.

They comforted each other in each other's arms for a long time until her father cleared his throat, mentioning that they still needed to go to the cemetery. Getting herself together once more, she pulled back sniffling, but beaming at him as she quietly wiped away the tears.

"Do you know how special you are?", she asked him.

He smiled back and chuckled, helping to dry her tears as well as his, saying, "Only because it's coming from the most special girl in the world. But there's more. You see that blank space there?"

She turned and looked again at the display, "Yes?"

Kevin looked at Jill and Tara followed his gaze back to her mother.

She said, "When we were looking up in the attic for the flag, Kevin stumbled across some old papers your grandfather had left after he died. I hadn't really gone through them very well and just packed them away. But he found something, something that your grandfather left for you."

Tara's breath caught in her throat, "What is it, Mom?"

She opened her mouth to answer, but hesitated. Then she smiled and replied, "Let's go visit your grandfather first, okay?"

This confused Tara momentarily. She wanted to know right then, but she saw her mother seemed to have a reason for her to wait, and Tara was so overjoyed with Kevin's gift, it really didn't bother her to wait a little longer.

After a pause, she said, "Okay, Mom."

The women attended to themselves, getting their faces back in order as the men went downstairs, gathering up the flowers they were bringing for the grave sites, then they went out to the car. They were quickly joined by the women and soon were on their way to the cemetery. Kevin sat with Tara in the back seat, his arms around her. Peacefully, they looked at the houses they passed by, many decorated for the holiday, and enjoyed the scenery. Occasionally, she would look back at him and smile, then give him a soft kiss.

The cemetery was not far, and they soon arrived at their destination. The gates were open, the iron spikes dressed with red, white, and blue banners. Tara's father slowly guided the car down the roadway amongst the headstones and monuments, many of them festooned with flags and bunting. It was a busy day, and there were many people slowly walking through and paying their respects to loved ones now gone. Getting to the right section, he parked the car and they all got out and started to walk slowly down a row of headstones until they came to two the Monroes knew well. A small flag was planted in the ground just in front of the first polished granite block. An older gravestone in the same fashion was on its left side, and Kevin saw that was where Tara's grandmother rested. They all stood there regarding the headstone attentively as Kevin read the inscription.

James Jackson Mallory

1921 - 2003

Beloved Husband, Father, and Grandfather

_May you always fly free in heaven_.

Her father gave the flowers to Tara and she placed them in the vase in front of the headstone. Jill Monroe placed a similar floral grouping in the vase on her mother's grave. They stood there for awhile contemplating and remembering as Kevin waited close by, respectfully still.

Then, tentatively, Tara moved forward. She slowly knelt down on the ground before the tombstone, gently stroking the stone, running her fingers lightly across the lettering, and after a short pause, she spoke to it.

"Hi Grandpa.", she said softly, her voice quavering, "It's your princess. I wanted to come and say hello again. To tell you how much I miss you and how much I love you. Today, I want, I need to say something I haven't said before. I need to say that I wish I could have seen you more those last two years, and I'm sorry that I didn't. I want you to know that."

Her mother's eyes filled with tears as she listened to her daughter speaking to her father, but remained silent as Tara continued the conversation.

"I always knew there was something about the war that you wouldn't talk about, but I didn't know why until today. I think if you had told me before, I might not have understood. Maybe I would have been too young. But now, I think I know something about the kind of pain you lived with, the sadness you had for the loss of your friends. I think I understand now, Grandpa. I wish, I wish I could have been there to hug you and love you through that, and take the pain away, at least a little. I know I could have done it, because I am so lucky now to have someone, someone who did that for me, who showed me how. I know your story now, and I want to take that pain away, the way Kevin took mine away. You'd really like him, Grandpa. He talks just like you, and I love him."

Jill Monroe couldn't hold it in any more. She began crying again as she turned to Mark to hold her. She was going to give the letter to Tara herself, but instead pulled it out of her pocket as she embraced her husband, handing it to Kevin. Kevin was surprised momentarily, but then took the letter and turned towards Tara, kneeling down on the ground with her, holding it in both hands.

As she looked up slowly to him, he said gently, "Tara, your grandfather wrote you a letter. It's dated a few days before he died. I haven't read it, nor has your mother. It was written for you. I think you would want to put it in the display case, but I'll let you decide after you read it. That's why I left the open space in the case for it."

Tara looked at him wide-eyed, then examined the letter closely, handling it with near reverence as she read the front. Smiling, she recognized his handwriting, shaky as it was. Holding something new from him was like his coming back from the beyond, to hold and love her again, to talk with her again. Slowly she pulled out the flap and carefully took out the two pages within. Then she gave the envelope back to Kevin, opened up the folded sheets, and started reading...

* * *

_My darling princess,_

_I write you now because I know my time is short. I am not sad. I have had a good, long life, more than any man deserves, and I am grateful that God has given me so much, my family being the greatest of those gifts. You know your grandmother was the light of my life, and when I lost her I thought I just couldn't go on. But I was able to keep going because of my children and grandchildren. Through all of you, I found that I could endure. You have all made life worthwhile for me yet. Now I love all my grandchildren equally, but you are an only child, unlike your cousins, and you are also the youngest except for your aunt Cindy's kids. They have barely just arrived in this world, and I'm sorry I won't get a chance to know them better. But that is why I made the decision to stay near and be there for you a little bit more than the others. I don't think they begrudged me that._

_Dearest Tara, I want you to know that for the last fourteen years you have been the joy of my life, the source of my greatest happiness. I cannot tell you how much I have enjoyed our chess games and our long talks, the long walks we would take through the neighborhood. I watched you grow from a baby into an incredibly beautiful young woman, seeing you go out into the world with such enthusiasm and hope. There is no greater blessing for me now than seeing you spread your wings and fly._

_Of course, I know that over the last couple of years you have grown up pretty quickly and your interests have changed. You're a young woman now, and it's only natural for your interests to turn to other things like boys and clothes. I knew it was coming. After all, I watched your mother go through the same process. So I knew you needed to go your own way, to grow up, even if it meant we couldn't spend quite as much time together. And I want you to know that it's okay. _

_If you are reading this letter, then I am already gone. Please do not be sad for me, my princess. I am content, though I will miss our games and our talks. But I also want you to know that if you are feeling that you somehow deserted me, that you have neglected me recently, you must understand that it is not true. You needed to explore, to learn new things, to go places where I could not. But even if you weren't physically there with me, I want you to know you were always with me in spirit, always there in my heart. I will live on through you, through your memories of me. That's the way of life. _

_So don't worry about me. I have no regrets. I only want you to be happy, to go on and be whatever it is you want to be. Your grandmother is beside me now, and I want you to know that I've got three good drinking buddies up here and I'm having a really good time with them. We'll be laughing together, trading old war stories, and enjoying ourselves. But also, I want you to know that I'll always be watching over you from above, and I hope you'll see my smiles heading in your direction every time the sun comes up. God bless you and keep you, my princess, for now you are my queen, and will be always._

_Love,_

_Grandpa_

* * *

Tara tenderly folded the pages and held them in her lap with her left hand as she leaned forward and touched her forehead to the gravestone. She placed her other palm on the smooth granite, and the tears simply flowed from the sheer joy and serenity of the moment. Her face shone with such peace and contentment that it moved Kevin to tears of his own as he could see how supremely happy she was then. But this was her moment with her grandfather. Slowly, he got up and walked back to where her parents stood and waited, and Tara sat there before the headstone that way for a long while, blissfully communing with him in a conversation that was now free from regret.

It seemed like they spent a lifetime there, but finally her father walked up and touched her on the shoulder, saying, "Are you okay, baby?"

Tara looked up at him, her face angelic with the joy she felt and replied, "Yes, Daddy. The pain is gone now, for both of us."

"Time to go then."

"I know, Daddy."

She turned back to the headstone, smiling and still caressing it with her hand, then softly whispered, "Thank you, Grandpa... ...thank you..."

Her parents went back towards the road as Kevin helped her up and she brushed off her dress. As he looked into her eyes, there was such a radiance and glow about them that it brought out another smile from him, and he hugged her close and kissed her tenderly. Then they walked together, arms around each other's waists, back to the car where her parents waited to take them home.

**Let us always remember the fallen heroes. The epilogue will be posted tomorrow to complete this story.**


	17. Epilogue

**Author's note: And so, we come to the end. The future beckons, and the past is left behind, but always remembered. And there are times when one must live for the moment.**

**Epilogue**

The door opened to laughter as Kevin carried Tara through and headed for the bedroom.

"Will you stop it?", she cried out laughing, "We aren't even married and you're already trying to play house!"

"Hey!", he said, "You started it! You were the one who suggested moving in together!"

"I _so_ did not, Kevin Guberman! I said I would likely spend most of the time over here, not _move in!_"

"That's not the way you made it sound!"

She yelped as he plopped her down on the bed, roiling over with laughter again as he landed right beside her.

"I did not make it sound that way, you goof!" she said haltingly through the giggling, "I just said that with us going to pre-med classes together, it would be easier if I was able to work out of your apartment because it was actually _closer_ to the classes! I only meant to keep a few things here so I wouldn't constantly have to go back to the dorm room!"

"You mean to keep a few things here and most of it in your dorm room so I can avoid a date with your father and his chain saw."

"Hey, he's not that bad and you know it! He and I spent a lot of time talking over the summer and we were really open about things. He knows how much I love you."

"And I love you."

"You better!", she riposted.

She giggled as he leaned over and kissed her lightly. In the dim light from the lamp on the end table, he gazed into those electric blue eyes of hers, and he could not help but continue to be amazed at his good fortune, to have landed the girl of his dreams.

Tara was thinking much the same, grateful for her incredible luck. They were on their own now, going to college. She knew they would be close and she would spend most of her time with him, but she still felt she should formally stay on campus, so she had moved into the dorm and had a roommate. Even though her parents completely trusted Kevin, they felt much happier with that arrangement. But it sure looked like she may not get to know her roommate very well...

Before they arrived at Dartmouth to begin classes, Kevin and Tara had a long talk with her parents. They had carefully prepared themselves to tell them about coming here to begin their college careers, both now aimed at a career in medicine. Kevin knew this involved the fact that not only were they going to be going to college together, but also to medical school together. He knew he had to explain that it would be difficult to get into the same medical school that way except under one circumstance, and that was if they were married. For Kevin, it was not a question of if, but when, and although he had not yet discussed it with her, Tara had been completely sure they would find some way to go to medical school together. For married couples, the match for medical school allowed for those situations, as long as both candidates were acceptable to the school on their own respective merits. However, during the long talk with her parents, Kevin wasn't able to tell them that just yet. He hadn't asked Tara.

Kevin had this in mind soon after the day they spoke with them and Tara told them she intended to be a physician and that she had been accepted to Dartmouth. Nobody else, except their friends, knew about it, so the next people who had to be told were both sets of parents. They had discussed it, and decided to tell her parents first. It was one evening when Kevin came over for dinner. When they finished eating, they announced their plans. Both Mark and Jill were taken a little unawares because she had applied to Dartmouth without telling them. She had meant to be a surprise, and it turned out they were very pleased to hear it. They agreed with her decision and were happy she had been accepted, although they questioned her closely to make sure that was want she wanted and was not just following Kevin's lead, but he assured them that he had no hand in this, that this was something she really wanted to do. With her grades she had been able to get a scholarship. But her father reassured her that even without that, he would find a way to pay for her college if it was needed, and even medical school if necessary. No mention of their relationship was made at the time, and this concerned Jill a bit, but she let it go, sure the kids would figure that out on their own in good time.

She had no need to worry. Later on, Kevin managed to get Mark and Jill alone, and he had asked them formally for Tara's hand and for their blessing. Jill broke down and cried, hugging him dearly as Mark grinned and clapped him on the back. They were more than happy to give it. That's when he explained about the match system and how it would allow married couples to go to school together.

After nightfall, Kevin asked Tara to set up the chess board out in the front yard under the old oak tree, just like her grandfather had done. There was a nearby street light that actually gave enough illumination to let them see the board quite well, and they played a game there. Tara won the game rather handily and frowned at him, seeing he was definitely off from his usual playing prowess. He replied he was distracted that night for good reason.

He got down on one knee, pulled out a small box, and presented an engagement ring to her, asking her to marry him. Tara was stunned, thinking he was going to wait until they were well into college, but she accepted without hesitation, crying and kissing him as she did. He placed the ring on her finger and then they both went back into the house so she could show her parents. They discussed arrangements for the wedding and after Kevin finally explained the match system to Tara and how it would help them, they planned for it to be sometime in their junior year so that they would be eligible. That meant that Johns Hopkins might be less likely a choice, but Kevin thought, 'Heck, Stanford or Harvard will do, as long as Tara's with me.'

These were the thoughts that went through his mind as he looked into those eyes full of the color of the sky. He thought briefly about the future, career, marriage, children...

"What're you thinking about, my valiant chess knight?", she said coyly.

Seeing he had been preoccupied, Kevin smiled, "Sorry about that, my queen, just musing over how we got to where we are, and about the future."

"Like what?"

A thought entered his mind.

"Tara, if we have children, I want to name our son, if you think it's okay."

She stared at him, a little surprised, "Gee, Kev, aren't you getting a little ahead of yourself?"

"Maybe. But we are engaged, so I don't think that's too unreasonable."

"Yeah. Okay, but the name thing. That depends. What did you have in mind?"

"James Mallory Guberman."

She gasped softly, then she reached up and pulled him back down, tenderly kissing him.

When he came up for air again, he said, "I take it that's a yes?"

"You better believe it!", she said softly, smiling widely and then kissing him again long and passionately.

She lay back down slowly, savoring the feel of his lips on hers as she gazed at him.

"I guess the only question left then,", she said, "is when."

"Yeah, we have to finish college, then medical school."

"So long?", she said achingly.

"I know.", he said in resignation.

"But other couples in medical school don't have to wait so long."

Thinking it over, he smiled at her, "You know, Tara, you're right. We don't have to wait that long. We can find a way to do it all."

"Good.", she said, "Because I've been thinking."

"For...?"

"I want to get married this spring. I don't want to wait."

He looked deep in her eyes, seeing how strongly she felt about this. He smiled again and kissed her once more.

"Whenever you want to get married, Tara. I'll be there. You just tell me where and when. As far as I'm concerned, I'm married to you already. I'm here with you, going to Dartmouth, then into medicine. If this isn't heaven, I'm at least already living the honeymoon."

She giggled, the huge smile filling her face.

"My chess knight.", she sighed, "Always thinking of me."

"Chess knight, huh? Wasn't I supposed to turn into your king?"

Her eyes softened, "Mmmmm, that's certainly a possibility."

She pushed him over on his back, kissing him fiercely. When she rose up again, the look in her eyes was positively feral. Her right hand reached up and undid the first button of her blouse.

Kevin's mouth opened slightly as he searched her face closely.

"You did say.", she said, "We would see."

Kevin blinked at her, still surprised, "Are you sure?"

"I've never been more sure of anything in my life.", she said seriously.

"Uh, what about... ...you know."

She bent down and gently kissed his cheek, brushing her lips against his skin momentarily before facing him again, her lips less than an inch from his, and she whispered, "Your mother has already taken care of that."

Kevin's eyes opened wide at that, "Really? Wow!"

She kissed him on the neck and looked into his eyes once more, saying, "You see, my valiant knight has to advance to the eighth rank to be promoted."

Kevin slowly grinned, "Oh! So are you playing Queen's Gambit now?"

"And if I accept it, do you think the time is right?", she asked softly.

He looked at her intensely as he put his arms around her and pulled her in closer.

"Pawn to queen four.", he said, gently giving her a quick kiss.

She purred and responded, "Pawn to queen four.", then kissed him more fiercely, even quicker, waiting for his answer.

"Pawn to queen bishop four."

Another quick yet passionate kiss.

"Ohhhhh! Now I've got you, Guberman! Pawn takes pawn!", she responded, straddling him fully and lowering her body directly on top of his, now kissing him more ravenously and taking the initiative for several moments before he suddenly raised up and turned her over onto her back. She squealed in surprise but laughed contentedly as he lay on top of her, her arms and legs tightening around him.

Then she knew he really would transform into her king this night as he softly spoke the last word to complete the gambit his queen had accepted, and she didn't mind the result in the least as he descended passionately onto her lips yet again.

"Checkmate."

**THE END**

**My sincerest appreciation and thanks go out to Campy for his kind indulgence of letting me use the storyline he created and taking it further along. To all of those who have read, I thank you very much for taking the time to enjoy my work. For those who have reviewed as well, I also give my sincerest appreciation and thanks for their support and comments as they often help me review and improve my writing. There is more of the_ Resolution_ universe coming, and I hope to be able to present it soon on the web site. **


End file.
